


Persona 6

by thegreathedgehog



Category: Persona Series
Genre: Explicit Language
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-15
Updated: 2020-03-04
Packaged: 2020-03-05 18:02:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 61,809
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18833866
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thegreathedgehog/pseuds/thegreathedgehog
Summary: Haru is the daughter of the CEO of Japan's fifth largest corporation. He begins to train Haru to inherit his position after he retires, revealing secrets about his success that disgust her. She secretly exposes him by turning it in and replacing it with a fake that she knew he'd destroy, because he told her he would when he had his lawyers go over it. Afterwards, she is placed into the protective custody of one Hana Tsurugi, the officer that talked her into exposing her father. He admits his plans to return to his hometown, thinking it'll be safe. What secrets await Haru in Hana's hometown?Keiji is the youngest member of a family that run a shrine near the only path into the Sairento Forest that is paved, from Haneiyosei. His family are hardcore traditionalists and while not vocally opposing his attending school, do plenty to let their dissatisfaction be known. He feels trapped. He isn't sure he wants to inherit the shrine and family business of blessing the town but he knows his family will disown him if he resists. He doesn't see a way out. What fate awaits out shrine priest-in-training?





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Here it is. The unveiling of a new project, Persona 6. I plan to tell a traditional persona story but I'm adding my own little twists to it. Some may have noticed it already. Either way, I hope it'll be an enjoyable ride. Also, yes, this is M rated with the themes i'm going to explore. I could give a teaser and I will but not as much as I'd like as it'd give too much away.... all I'll say is: Nuckalavee.

**_Prologue_ **

_ Revelations _

 

 

 

_ Part 1: Haru _

A man in a suit was pulled to his knees roughly. Police stood behind him, holding his hands behind his back, though the handcuffs did that well enough. The man glared at the uniformed detective that stepped forward and said in a tone filled with venom “I will have your job by week’s end. I’m Yoshinori Matsuhada. I own japan’s fifth largest corporation!”. The detective nodded and said “Uh-huh… and normally you’d be right…. Except we have something even you can’t just make go away” and knelt down, showing the man a series of documents, stapled together at the bindings. The detective flipped through each, showing each page signed by Yoshinori. Yoshinori’s face grew more and more distraught, before turning bright red as he shouted with the rage of a thousand suns “How in the hell did you get those!? I personally shredded and burned those documents!!!”. It was then the door opened and he slowly tilted his head to his left. Staring at him with eyes filled with conflict was the man’s daughter, Haru Matsuhada. She looked away when their eyes met, clearly feeling further conflicted, seeing her father on his knees being arrested. A stern-looking officer next to her, with another officer, led Haru towards the door leaving the room, though Yoshinori noticed a distinct lack of resistance, anger, fear, and handcuffs. At least, not fear of the officers, but of him. He gritted his teeth and blood spat out as one broke and he shouted, ignoring the pain “You bitch! You would dare betray your father!? I hope it was worth it, because a bimbo like you doesn’t deserve to inherit my legacy! I’m disowning you, you-” but was cut off as the police stood him up then pushed him, causing him to trip and fall. Yoshinori screamed out in pain, the noise ringing through the halls of his mansion as his daughter, a 5 foot 2 in. tall teenage girl with black ponytails and green eyes was led through the hall. She wore a black and white business woman outfit and held a purse to her chest. She wore large, round glasses and a heart-shaped locket. Her oxford shoes made a soft pit-pat on the carpet as they walked. The police officer to her left said after they left “Don’t worry… you did the right thing. I’ll uphold my end and protect you”. 

  
  


She slowly nodded and glanced at him, then the ground and said “Th… thank you…” in a silent tone. The officer looked at her as she said “Officer… Hana…. Tsurugi…. If you hadn’t…. Offered protective custody-” but Hana replied quickly “I understand… he’s a powerful man. Any kid would’ve been scared… hell, even the government was slow to respond… but it’s over for him”. There was a long silence. Long enough that as they left the mansion, Haru looked at Hana and asked “How… how long…?”. He looked back, hesitated before sighing and replying “Haru… justice… isn’t immediate. With your evidence… we may know where to look but… there are so many places…” but stopped and looked at her, noticing the distraught. He could tell she wanted a number, not excuses. He sighed and said “Maximum 2 years. We have a lot to go through…. It’s less about hard evidence and more how long we’re locking him up… or…” and stopped himself. He didn’t want to tell the kid her father being sentenced to the death penalty was a possibility. They needed the kid to testify that the document she provided was found in her father’s study. However, the kid figured it out and gasped, staring at him with a horrified expression. It stung a bit as he opened the car door to his personal vehicle. She hesitated, for a full four minutes, before stepping forward. “I… I understand… he did… horrible things. It… makes sense he should be punished. I won’t… run” Haru said, trying to sound brave. He could hear the pain however. “You’re a good kid Haru…. You’re going places. I’ll make sure of it” he said, giving a genuine compliment. Not many teens, especially in Japan, would turn over their parents, especially when they were rich. He closed the door behind Haru after she got in and put her seatbelt on and got into the driver’s seat. He locked the doors and turned the car on. “Where… will I be living…?” Haru asked. He looked into the rearview mirror and said “My old hometown, Haneiyosei… we’ll be living there until the trial”. Haru looked out the mirror and watched as an infuriated and clearly resisting Yoshinori was dragged out of the mansion and into a police car. She sighed sadly, and began to cry. Hana looked away and began driving Haru from the only home she had known. A mansion at the edge of Tokyo. 

 

 

 

_ Part 2: Keiji _

A young man woke up in the morning. He groaned slightly from the slightly sore back. Not because of the wood floor he laid on, but because of injuries sustained the previous day. He had been assaulted by a man possessed by a demon, as his parents, grandparents, and great grandparents all claimed. He was part of a household that owned a shrine that sat on the only marked road into the forest nearby. It was a shrine to the local forest god that went as “Menimienai yōsei no kami”. He didn’t know the specifics, specifically because the elders in his family forbade the rest from teaching him until, in their words, “He was ready”, but he had learned that the town only prospered because it showed proper deference to Menimienai yosei no kami. He assumed that was the fact that at least monthly every resident of the town would show up, give a 100 yen donation and a small trinket of some kind. He didn’t memorize every face, but every face he saw always rang a bell. However, sometimes, there were incidents like yesterday where a man would attack for almost seemingly no reason. Usually, the police had to get involved. Thankfully it was rare, only happening once a year. What was troubling was the fact that this one had been the second this year. It was only April too, so it being late in the year couldn’t have been a valid explanation. Further, he couldn’t help but think it was related to the three ancient laws all permanent residents of Haneiyosei knew of. No going into the forest at night, when a child reached the age of eight a father and the child would overnight camp in the woods, and absolutely no one was to question what occurred in the woods. Even if most played it off as a joke, he could not recall a single instance of someone doing such. Far as he knew, everyone followed the tradition. Even he had, though he could not recall that night. He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts so he could finish his morning chores and go to school.

 

 

As he was finishing the dishes, his grandfather walked in. “Morning, Keiji” the grandfather said, before sitting by the table. Their home was very traditional and unlike modern houses that uses hinge doors. Further, they had no modern furniture that wasn’t modeled after traditional furniture, like a couch or chairs. The only modern piece of furniture were the dressers. He finished the dishes and began making breakfast, saying “Morning grandfather. Did you sleep well?”. The grandfather nodded and said “Absolutely. Thank you for asking, grandson. Tell me, are you planning to stay home today?”. Keiji shook his head, saying “I wasn’t grandfather. I need to turn work in from all the days I stayed home last week… did you need help?”. The grandfather said “No. I thought today would be a good day to teach you more of the family trade…. That’s all”. Keiji fell silent. He then said very reluctantly “I… could simply leave after I suppose…”. The grandfather, silent for several moments replied “Thank you, Keiji. You are a good grandson… you are going to be a great priest one day”. He only nodded, doubt filling him. He held it in however. His family was very hardcore traditionalist. Defying his grandfather’s wishes for a full day of education would risk him being brought before the elders, his great grandparents, and punished. He finished breakfast, which consisted of white rice with some deer sausage and a single egg. It wasn’t exactly traditional, but the elders declared this the meal all Noori family members would eat for breakfast. He filled a bowl with white rice, placed the cooked egg over the center, and surrounded the edges with slices of the deer sausage. He presented it to his grandfather in the traditional manner; sitting down next to him, placing the chopsticks on top the meal, saying the prayer “by the grace of the yosei kami, I happily present your meal, venerable grandfather”, and then offering the bowl. The grandfather accepted the bowl, took the chopsticks, and began to eat. His stern face remained stoic as he ate and he said no word of thanks. It was normal. He prepared his own meal, this time the prayer being “Venerable yosei kami, I thank you for this meal”. He began to eat as his parents, his grandmother, elders, and younger brother and sister came in. His father prepared the rest of the meals, following tradition, and then sat to eat his. He sat silently and ate, trying to repress his desire to attend school, knowing if he denied his grandfather nothing good would come of it. He tried to not feel trapped. 


	2. Chapter 1: Welcome, to the Velvet Room

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Going to start doing these because its smart. Disclaimer stuff about how i don't own persona etc, etc.

**_Chapter 1_ **

_ Welcome… to the Velvet Room _

  
  
  


Haru sat in silence. She was sitting at what appeared to be a campsite. The woods around her gave a pale, blue light making everything have a small shade of blue. Above, a blue moon hung in the sky, the blue leaves of the forest sprinkling down now and again. Before her was a small campfire that gave off a blue flame. Tents of blue stood nearby, as if ready to be occupied. On their sides and top were the symbolage of a half white, half blue mask giving off a blue tear on the black side. She was wearing her normal clothes however. A black and white businesswomen's general attire, round glasses, and her heart locket that held the picture her family had taken mere months after her harrowing birth. Across from her, opposite of the small campfire, sat an odd-looking man. He sat in an ornate wooden chair. Next to him, a woman stood, dressed in formal green camping attire. A small but loose skirt, boots that lacked heels. The woman looked at her with distinct grey eyes and hair. The balding man's features finally came into focus. She was shocked she failed to notice the bulging eyes and extremely long nose, nor the large grin he wore. He sat, leaning forward, with his elbows resting on his thighs and his hands folded together. He said to her “Ah… we have a guest. Welcome, to the velvet room. This place exists between mind and matter, dream and reality”. She took that in, and sighed, saying “Then… this is simply a dream…” slowly. The man nodded and said “Precisely. I am Igor, master of this place. My assistant to my left is Helena” and gestured to her. The woman to his left nodded, bowed, and said “It is nice to meet you”. Igor returned his hands to their folded position and said “What might the name of our guest be?”. She hesitated but sighed and answered “My name is Haru Matsuhada” with a low tone. 

  
  


Igor nodded slightly and said “Normally, only those bound by a contract may enter… and yet, you are here… and a guest with an extraordinary power”. Haru looked at him now, and tilted her head slightly. She asked with a confused tone “Power…? Me…?”. Igor nodded and said “Yes… we will discuss the matter another time. I am sure we will meet again. Your time here is almost at an end”. The woman next to him spoke now, with a thick but strangely understandable accent “Nothing meaningless happens in the velvet room miss. It is fate you arrived here in your dreams… it is likely fate you will return”. She blinked and yawned, feeling tired. Igor gestured to a nearby tent, saying “You may return to your reality through there. I look forward to when we meet again”. Haru only nodded, standing, and heading into the tent. It was like one of those tents camping nuts buy that have a lot that can be put in. Foldable futons, quick-assemble stoves and ovens. There was only a blue framed bed with light blue sheets and blue blankets. She shrugged and headed to the bed, laying in it and under the covers. She yawned again, taking her glasses off and putting them on a nightstand that materialized next to her bed, and closed her eyes, letting sleep claim her. 

 

 

She woke up. She was in the car, the backseat specifically. Officer Hana sat behind the driver's seat. He looked into the rearview mirror and asked “Have a good nap?”. She nodded and said “Y-yes…. Are we almost there?”. Hana nodded and said “Yes” just as Hanayosei came into view. She could see the large, sprawling town before her. It was more like a city really, with a large district that had several large skyscrapers, another that had a large and intricately beautiful tower. What caught her eye was the fact not a single part of it looked run-down. Even Tokyo had its problems if one looked. Hanayosei looked like unblemished by poverty. There was a massive forest with a large cherry tree in the center. The mountains that enclosed the forest obstructed its true size, as it continued through a pass on the far side of the valley, which all of Hanayosei sat in. They entered through a road that went down one of the mountains. According to the maps she studied before today, Hanayosei had many such roads. “Is the town… as nice as it seems?” she asked, hesitant to believe the wonder before her. Hana chuckled a bit and said “Can’t speak much on the people, since the town attracts and loses many often, but in general? Yeah… it was a treat growing up here. I only left because I got a great job offer from Tokyo”. She let herself smile a bit and say “Then… I…. I suppose I look forward to living here…”. She decided to let herself feel some joy. Hana smiled and said “I’m glad. I look forward to not letting you down”. 

 

 

Hana gave her a small tour of the neighborhood they’d stay in. It was a very nice place. There was some kind of vegetation on every street, even if it was just shrubbery. Kids could play in the streets with no worries. Everyone seemed genuinely friendly. The city seemed to work hard to make it a place worth living in and worked to make the lives of its citizens a happy one. Based on what she saw, even the relations between disgruntled customers and employees was good. There were problems of course. Money lenders seeking to collect debts openly, the yakuza made their presence known. Yet, these problems were not unique to Hanayosei. Such things were common around Japan. Eventually, Hana said “Alright. That does it for the tour… let’s go to what will be our home for the duration of our stay” and turned down a road. They weren’t close to the inner city, but they were a mere few miles from it. The house he stopped at was a nice, if small, two story house. She didn’t know the exact size, but it was fairly standard for a japanese home. 

 

 

Hana got out and she did too. “Go ahead and go inside. I’ll unpack and bring everything in. Then we have to talk” Hana said, moving and using the remote car keys to open the trunk that carried their luggage. She simply nodded and headed inside. It was a small place, like most homes, but had plenty of room. She moved to the table in the living room with the flatscreen sitting there. It had already been set up and connected to a cable box. She sat at the table, sitting with her legs folded at the side as she was taught, and waited. Hana carried in a series of suitcases, setting them near the dining table sitting as a barrier between the kitchen and living room, and moved to the couch near the table she sat at. “Alright. All that’s left is to unpack our luggage” he said. She looked at him a bit puzzled but stayed silent. Hana seemingly understood though and continued “I had the movers go ahead and unpack everything for a substantial tip. Nothing’s out of place so they did a good job”. She nodded and looked away, saying “Yeah… even set up cable…… and likely internet”. Hana nodded and said “Yeah, though that’s more Hanayosei than them… Hanayosei companies are some of the friendliest you’ll meet. It’s almost downright bizarre, until you consider the fact that their kindness earns them a lot of money”. Haru nodded, stayed silent for a few moments in contemplation, then asked “Have you….. Ever heard of the velvet room…?”. Hana shook his head saying “No… never have”. Haru sighed and said “Alright then…”. She stood slowly and said “Please excuse me… I think I’ll sleep” and began towards her room. She didn’t stop, not hearing the protests of Hana. 

 

 

Keiji himself awoke in a blue traditional style japanese room. Before him sat Igor in an ornate wooden chair, his assistant Helena next to him. Both wearing the clothes they had always worn. The american-style business suit Igor wore, and the traditional miko garb that Helena wore. His eyes lulled a bit. He was tired from the days work. “Welcome back” Igor said “It is nice to see you again”. Keiji nodded and said “Indeed….”. Igor raised an eyebrow ever so slightly and asked “Is everything okay?”. Keiji nodded and said “Just had a long day…. Grandparents wanted me to help with the shrine”. Igor nodded slightly and said “I see… then I shan’t keep you long. Have you grown accustomed to your power?”. Keiji nodded and said “Yeah…. The other night I retrieved a girl from the woods before one of…. ‘Them’.... Could claim the rest of her soul”. Igor nodded and asked “Then you’ve decided on your course of action? You’re really going to fight ‘them’?”. Keiji nodded and said “Yes” with a tone filled with determination and eyes burning with resolve “I won’t let ‘them’ destroy my town or people!”. Igor nodded and said “Then… let us discuss how we will assist you another time…. Our ace”. With that Keiji fell backwards, feeling a powerful need to sleep come over him. He gave in and let himself sleep and return to the reality he knew and was comfortable in. 

  
  


Keiji woke up slowly. He yawned and stretched. He felt well rested, mostly thanks to taking the day before to rest after delving into the nearby forest to save a girl that had wandered in and then being attacked by a ‘demon’. He got up and prepared himself as normal. He switched his pajamas for his school clothes, he did his hair with his traditional japanese hairbrush, and he made sure to brush his teeth and eat a mint before heading to the dining room. There, he prepared the dish expected of him at the quality expected, seasoned his dish, served himself, and began to eat. As his grandfather walked in, he greeted him as expected of him “Good morning, Ojiisan”. His grandfather nodded and said in response “Good morning, Keiji-kun”. He served himself and began to eat, his grandmother joining them. He greeted her as well. He finished and cleaned his dish in the sink, then moved to head back to his room to finish preparing for school. “Keiji-kun… I thought I should inform you. We need groceries, however your parents are taking some time off work to restock…. So enjoy your day” his grandfather said suddenly “I expect you back home to make and serve dinner however”. Keiji smiled and nodded, saying “Thank you, Ojiisan. I will make sure to” and went to prepare for school. 

 

 

He saw the girl again. A girl that wore purple eyeliner, mascara, and lipstick. The girl also dyed her hair a combination of black and purple, giving it a streaked appearance. She would wear black and purple striped clothes, a leather jacket, a black miniskirt with thigh-high socks and fishnets, and large boots. She would carry her things in a backpack, but also what looked like a guitar case hanging off it. She always looked angry. Today, he noticed she carried the same expression. Not the one she had when she wandered towards the forest. A listless, blank expression. Devoid of any thought, save going forward. He sighed a bit, knowing the root cause. One of ‘them’ did something to her as a child and left her like this. After all, ‘they’ lived in the forest, coming out only at night, and the town always went camping with their firstborns when they turned eight…. He didn’t need an imagination to understand what was going on. He simply was curious on the how and why. Regardless, he had seen the results when he failed…. He looked at one now. A girl named Hei Arima. A normally happy girl that one day became extremely bland. She lost her popularity and many of her friends. She seemed…. Content despite the loss of station. She in fact was what caused him to investigate to the degree he did… and how he stumbled across the towns dark secret and his power. His only remaining question was what the Velvet Room was. The Sairento Forest had taught him to not take things at face value. Sadly, that blandness extended to multiple adults and students he knew. He headed into the school to begin the day. 

  
  


As school ended a few of his male friends walked over. They were Keisuke Sagiri, a black haired student that averaged high percentage grades but was not part of the top grades in the class, nevermind the school. Sai Jinji, a student that seemed to be a rebel but simply had a problem with acting before thinking. Finally, there was Yuuta Mamoru. A student that had trust issues but since he had known Keiji since grade school trusted him, and in turn trusted Sai and Keisuke. “Hey” Sai called out “You available today? Or your oldies keep’in you?”. He gave a small chuckle and said “Nah… they said my parents would handle my chores today, so I’m free. I just have to be home in time to cook dinner”. Keisuke spoke up next, saying “Well, since it’s been a while, why don’t we hang out together at the mall?”. Keiji nodded and stood, gathering his bag up and saying “Sure. Sounds like fun”. 

 

 

They decided to eat at the local diner. It was styled after a 1960’s diner that the owner visited on a business trip 35 years ago. While american food wasn’t his favorite, he loved the decor and decided to adopt it for his own restaurant. He served traditional japanese food, like udon, sukiyaki, or even miso soup. The diner even served Kaiseki once a month at very affordable prices, so long as they made good profit the past month. He didn’t have any Kaiseki today, but he did order some beef sukiyaki. Keisuke ordered Soba, while Sai ordered a bowl of ramen, and Yuuta ordered a pizza for them to share. They talked about things happening in their lives, and their schoolwork. The conversation eventually turned to girls and his friends bemoaning their girl problems. They wanted girlfriends because it was becoming a trend that popular people had a girlfriend, while losers didn’t. Keiji didn’t care however. He had his job at the shrine and if he dared to try flirting with a girl, his grandparents would likely make his life hell. However, as he stared out the window he saw a very curious sight. It was the girl he saved but she wasn’t alone. Another girl walked with her, one that he was certain he’d never seen in town or in school before. “Hey, anyone know that girl?” he asked. His friends glanced, looked at each other, then Keisuke said “She’s the new transfer student. Came from Iwatodai. Her name’s Haru Matsuhada. She’s in my class”. Keiji looked at Haru deep in thought as Yuuta said “I think… I saw her name on the news…..”. Sai chuckled and said, swallowing a bite of pizza he had taken “Are you kidding? Matsuhada is the name of the family that runs that one corp! You know, the one that sells a lotta schools ninety percent of their supplies?”. Keiji looked at Haru and muttered “Then… why is she hanging out with that girl…?”. 

  
  


Haru had woken up feeling apprehensive. One might think it was due to her situation. However, she knew the truth. She had become an emotional wreck ever since her father revealed to her the company secret. That they were deep in the world of law-breaking. She’d feel anxious and worried every waking second. Sleep was her only escape and as waking approached, it’d creep back into her. However, she did as she always had. Ignored it and went about her day, trying her best to ignore it. Today in particular was different however. She wore different clothes than normal, she ate a different breakfast than normal (bacon, eggs, and some rice on the side), and she walked a different route from a different house to a different school than normal. Everything was different. Hana was nice enough as a guardian, having her school bag and essentials ready. Hana offered her a ride to her school, which she declined politely and he wished her a good day. Such things were incredibly unusual. From an extremely young age her parents put the bare minimum effort in an attempt to make her self sufficient. It had the intended effect but with extra baggage. She was in a state of constant anxiety, wondering if she was doing enough to take care of herself. Further, she was hesitant to accept others help. It’s why it took a full year for her to accept Hana’s offer of protection in exchange for exposing her father. That’s why school should have sent her into a full meltdown. However, something peculiar happened. 

  
  


While she was eating her lunch, a small bento made by hana the night before and heated up using kitchen appliances instead of a microwave like most might. She was completely alone, as she preferred due to her upbringing. However, suddenly, a girl slammed her tray onto the table next to her and towered over her, menacingly. The girl had a beanie on but a pair of spiraling pigtails poked out, one strand white the other black. The girl wore a denim vest, open, a black undershirt, and ripped jeans. The girl also wore black makeup and had a piercing on each ear and her nose. “Hey!” the girl said in a rather intimidating, aggressive tone “What do ya think you’re doing sitting in my spot!?”. She yelped and moved away immediately, saying in a hurried tone “I’m so sorry senpai, please forgive me, I meant nothing by it, i’m new here and I didn’t know, please-” and was cut off as the girl sat down and moved into what was ‘her’ spot and began eating angrily, saying between bites “Whatever, ya moved, that’s all that matters”. She could feel herself shivering but she ignored it. She had to eat. She moved and began to eat slowly until the girl next to her spoke loudly, saying “Geez, you eat slower than a sloth…. The hells wrong with you?”. Haru shivered more as the girl stared at her, eating, with a glare like a cat does when something smaller than it catches its interest. The girl smirked confidently and then laughed and said “Holy shit, did I really scare ya that bad…?”. Haru tried to deny it but the girl just continued unimpeded and said “Geez, look at you! You’re shaking like a leaf! What a riot!”. Haru looked down at her food and ate, trying to ignore the rude girl now. The girl continued to stare, eating more, then finally sighed and said “Dammit…. Gonna make me feel guilty….”. Haru said nothing but finished and moved to get up and leave. The girl shoved a dumpling into her mouth, chewed quickly, then swallowed and stood, saying “Fine! Since you clearly can’t handle yourself in a real school, I’ll take you under my wing! You’re officially my groupie!”. Haru stopped and turned, wearing an expression of pure shock. “Wh… what…?” she asked timidly, yelping when suddenly the girl wrapped an arm around her as though she were a boyfriend or a really close friend hugging her awkwardly. The girl said “Call me Janna. What’s your name pipsqueak?”. Haru blushed a bit at the hug and quietly said “H-haru… haru… matsuhada… nice to… meet you…”. Janna smiled and said “Then, Haru, stay with me and you’ll have an easy life through school” and with a small push urged her to start walking. 

 

 

Thus the awkward situation she was in now. She was walking home with Janna after the girl had unceremoniously harassed her over a spot at a table in the cafeteria of the school, then declared that they were friends and she was her groupie. However… after walking with Janna and talking, as rude as Janna was, she was… relieved. She had been coddled by everyone that weren’t her parents and even Hana handled her like she was made of china. Janna suddenly showing up and being abrasive was a change of pace that she unexpectedly welcomed. “So… why’d you turn your old fart in?” Janna asked, turning away from where she said her house was. Haru hesitated but after a few seconds followed, saying “I… a police officer convinced me. I already disliked it greatly but… he gave me the strength-” but was cut off as Janna said “Bullshit”. She stopped and asked “Wh-what?”. Janna turned and said “You ‘eard me. Bullshit. No one turns on their old man like that… especially when they were stew’in on whether to or not for an entire frigg’in year. Naaaaah…. Somethin’ else made ya”. Haru considered her words, and began shaking as Janna said “If I were to guess? Bastard slighted you, and you saw a chance to get back, in your subconscious. So you did. Used that police officer like a weapon… not that i’m rail’in against you or anythin”. Janna walked over and slapped a hand onto her shoulder and said “It takes guts to turn on a dude with as much power as he did. Even if ya aren’t recogniz’in it. Good job. Let me nurture that strength, and grow it inta an oak tree”. Haru could only nod as Janna let go and said “Then, come. I wanna show ya something” and turned to lead her into town. Janna showed her the spot she practiced music at and played her a small song. An abandoned concert hall that had shut down due to the owner vanishing. She played something she wasn’t familiar with but she enjoyed. Janna had real talent after all. “What was that song?” she asked. Janna simply smiled and said “Beat It. A dark-skinned guy in America made it a while back… fell in love a few years back and learned to play guitar so I could play it”. Haru sImply smiled and said “I see… yeah. You did good. I can tell your talented. Janna simply smiled and posed with her guitar proudly. 

 


	3. Chapter 2: Awakening

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own persona. This is simply my fiction of a potential happening in the universe of persona, shared on the interwebs. It shares no commercial relation to any work named 'Persona' or any work owned by Atlus and never will be a commercial product (Unless of course someone steals this work and monetizes it but I can't control that and that rarely happens so yeah).
> 
> Note: these links do not work via click. copy+paste into your address bar or right-click and search google. the former is more accurate but the latter works fine too for browsers lacking a proper address bar. 
> 
> Note: Pwyll is pronounced like you would Push with a w. For reference, listen to this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPkPAdyXt_Y&t=382s
> 
> Theme for the form-changing, robed woman: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCeC6LzRqiE

**_Chapter 2_ **

_ The Awakening _

  
  
  


Keiji was again in the velvet room. Igor sat across from him, joined by the miko Helena. Igor, with his large grin, said “Welcome back. I believe it is time to address the services we of the velvet room offer to you, Keiji”. Keiji was silent for a moment, before nodding, saying “Of course… if you’re contacting me now, then…” but shook his head and said “Nevermind. How are you going to help me, sir?”. His tone had respect in it, as expected of the eldest son of a shrine. Igor said “Normally, a wild card has the power to fuse personas to give birth to new ones… you are not a wild card. No, your power is something much, much different” and with a snap of his fingers, summoned Keiji’s persona. It was an orange haired, lightly armored humanoid wielding a simple broadsword. The odd thing was though that it’s helmet went over its eyes and had a pair painted on. It also featured horns akin to the stereotypical ones on viking helmets. The mans features were also what one could describe as handsome, yet rugged. Keiji winced, having it being summoned by an outside party felt… weird to say the least. “You are an ace. You are similar to a wild card, in that you and your persona are not static, but you do not hold multiple persona nor change your persona like a wild card” Igor explained “Instead, we can change the arcana your persona, Pwyll, is associated with. Right now, for example, it is associated with the arcana of the Fool. Once you befriend and make a social link with, say, someone of the Magician arcana, we can change it to a Magician Arcana persona, opening new possibilities to it and yourself”. Keiji stared at his persona, asking in a quiet voice “Social links… what are those?”. Helena answered this time, saying “As you go through life, you form bonds with others. However, some bonds are strong ones. Ones that last a lifetime, even if neither party are aware of it. These strong, life-lasting bonds are social links. Genuine feelings of friendship, love, and trust are the foundation of social links”. Keiji mulled over it, asking “So… is it possible for past bonds to count?”. Igor nodded in response and said “Our other service by the way, is that we plan to tell you ‘their’ next target. At the moment, it has changed”. Keiji’s eyes widened and he asked “Who? Who are they targeting tonight?”Igor's smile lowered a bit and he said “Haru Matsuhada… you spied her an hour ago. Sadly, your time of sleep has ended… your friends are about to leave the diner. Have a nice night, Keiji…. We will meet again after you have formed a social link”. 

 

 

Keiji was shaken awake and abruptly. He heard his friend say “Hey. We’re goin... gett’in dark and your folks’ll be mad”. That was true. He stood and said “Thanks Sai” and moved to leave. Keisuke payed for their meal, as it was his turn. However, it’d be his turn next. That didn’t matter to him though. He had to deal with what would happen tonight. He bid his friends farewell and hurried home. He prepared dinner, served his family rice, noodled, pickled vegetables, and some prepared deer meat. They ate deer meat because it was the most plentiful game in the Sairento Woods. After eating, he asked his grandfather “Excuse me, Ojiisan, may I ask who is doing the dishes today?”. His grandfather thought and said “Your grandmother and mother are supposed to. I suppose you want to make plans for activities tonight?”. Keiji nodded and said “Nothing specific. I was thinking of just wandering town… so peaceful and the neon lights are nice”. It was sort of a lie but not that’d arouse suspicion. He had in fact done this in the past. His grandfather smiled and said “Then do so… just make sure to be in bed on time Keiji-chan”. Keiji stood, bowed and said “Thank you, Ojiisan”, put his dishes up, and said to the family as they finished their meals “I’m going out. Have a nice night Ojiisan, Obaasan, Okaasan, Otousan” and departed from the family shrine. He made a quick stop by his room to retrieve a few things however and then he went into the city but ducked into an alleyway and changed a bit. He pulled a hoodie from his backpack and put it on so he wouldn’t be readily recognized by his family. After this, he headed to where the rumors said Haru lived. He needed to be there when they began their temptations or he’d have to dive into the forest, something he hadn’t done yet. He wasn’t keen on doing it either. 

 

 

Haru had a nice day with Janna. From her point of view, Janna was rude, vulgar, abrasive, and potentially violent. However, she could sense it. The good in Janna. Whereas she was depressive, shy, and all around not interesting and bland, Janna was vibrant and full of life, even if it was explosive and destructive. Though, was it? Janna took an interest in her and became friends with her. Even if Janna dressed it up as making her a groupie, she was interested in Haru, and Haru was flattered. She had made a friend. Further, she witnessed Janna’s talent at music first hand. Not just playing though, Janna revealed a secret to her. “So. I’m gonna lay a secret on ya” Janna said to her, sitting on the edge of the stage, lights turning on and illuminating the pitch black area finally. They had been in darkness for twenty-five minutes. Haru listened as Janna said “I’m not just learn’in ta play songs like ‘Court of the Crimson King’ and ‘Aerosmith’. I’m also pretty sweet at writ’in riffs… wanna take a listen ta somethin’ i’ve been work’in on?”. Haru thought for a moment and nodded. She wasn’t a big fan of music, but as she had just discovered, that was because she had never truly heard it. It was all music picked by her father, that she honestly didn’t care for. Janna’s music had a tune and feeling to it that she personally liked. She smiled as Janna began playing a small tune. It similar to the songs she played, but the emotion behind it was different. It held sadness, a longing of something missing from her, and hope that she’ll find it. Haru enjoyed the music, although she wondered why she felt Janna like she was missing something. 

  
  


Regardless, around nine at night, Janna packed up and said “Alright. Time to get go’in… I’m hungry but I got no dough so… gotta make somethin’ at ‘ome… you good to go ‘ome on your own?”. Haru nodded and said “Yes… thank you”. Janna stared, thought for a moment, then sighed and asked “I doubt it… do ya even know where we are…?”.  Haru walked to the street, with Janna following, and tried to discern. She had a map in her head but she had never been very good at reading them. She bit her lip a bit, turned, and said in a tone of guilt “Honestly… not really…”. Janna just sighed and said “Alright… give me your street and address and I’ll walk ya home…. Be bad if I let my groupie get lost and attacked first night she was ‘ere”. Haru nodded and gave the address. Janna thought and nodded, saying “Got it… I know where that is. Come on, follow me”. Janna proceeded to walk south. Haru simply followed and after an hour of walking they were on the street her house was on. “Yes… that house” Haru said, pointing “Is mine. Thank you”. Janna nodded and said “No problem. I’m gonna head home… see ya tomorrow” and started to walk away. Haru hesitated but said aloud “Hey! Wait!”. Janna stopped, turning and asked “Yeah? What?”. “Would… you like to stay over? It’s quite late… and like you said, it’s dangerous… and I’m sure dinner’s ready… you must be hungry, right?” Haru stated, hoping she’d stay. She wasn’t sure why she wanted Janna to stay. Something… compelled her to keep Janna in this area. Janna thought about it and said “Eh… sure. Take me awhile ta get home anyway” and walked over to her. They then went to her house. 

 

 

She walked into the house and took her shoes off, then put them in a nearby shoe cupboard. Janna surprisingly followed suit. However, a figure emerged from the kitchen. They were in the living room, which while small was serviceable for having guests. It connected to a hallway that led to the kitchen, dining room, first floor bathroom, and master bedroom. To the right was the staircase leading upstairs to a room with a connected bathroom. The decor was modern japan style. Hana had came from the kitchen, dressed in a t-shirt and slacks. “You’re home quite late Haru… it’s 10 pm. I’d like an explanation” Hana said in a slightly demanding tone, though his expression softened when he saw Janna “Ah… excuse me. I didn’t notice you there. I’m Hana Tsurugi… unemployed for the moment but legal guardian for Haru here… are you one of her friends?” Hana explained. Janna nodded, saying “Yep… met her at school… was shak’in like a leaf. Took pity and made her a friend. Me. Janna”. Hana simply nodded. Hana stared for a moment before saying “Well, I made some fish and rice for dinner. You’re welcome to it Janna”. Janna smiled and said “I ain’t ever said no ta free food. Thanks pops!”. Hana smiled a bit and said “Your welcome. Consider it thanks for befriending Haru… she’s… in quite a predicament”. Janna moved to the dining room and Haru set her bag on the couch. As she passed though, Hana stopped her and said “You still haven’t said what you were out doing”. Haru looked away a bit, then sighed and said “Janna… showed me something important and played her guitar for me”. Hana stared at her, then sighed in relief, saying “Good…. I was worried it was something like causing trouble… if that’s all though then that’s okay. Just give me a call next time alright? You’re in witness protection. Any oddities around you are reasons to suspect your father sent someone”. Haru nodded and continued to the kitchen. Soon after, dinner was served. As Hana had said, it was simply rice and fish. Even so, the dinner was enjoyable for Haru. She could tell Hana put effort into his cooking. 

  
  


Keiji sat in the bushes across from the house Haru Matsuhada was staying at. He had already heard about it since she had become the talk of the town. Her name, appearance, and the newspapers outed her immediately. Thankfully, the news media hadn’t caught wind of it and the town itself had a very specific culture. It wouldn’t out even outsiders unless they had done something reprehensible and while some may have disapproved of Haru betraying her father, no one would argue that what she did was reprehensible. As such, the town wouldn’t out her to the media. What he had to worry about was something worse. A force that only came from the forest. It had terrorized the town for as long as he could remember and it only didn’t happen to him because of his family’s agreement with the beings in the forest. He didn’t know the full details but bits and pieces he caught from his parents painted a picture. Simply put, his family acted as an in and the focal point for the things from the forest and in exchange the rules set upon the town by the beings did not apply to his family, so long as they upheld their end and worship. As for the town, he had no idea what they wanted with it and its citizens. They were being preyed upon and their personalities altered. How and why he had no idea though. However, he knew his family’s shrine was their in into the town. That’s why he waited outside Haru’s house. They had noticed her enter and were planning on trying to lure her to the forest, to do whatever they do to people in there. Thus, he had to attack the one who would come and drive them back. Then, the worst happened. It wasn’t the one he expected and she wasn’t alone. 

 

 

The lights went off, meaning Janna stayed the night. Only 10 minutes after this, the beings from the forest arrived, but not in the numbers he expected. It was not just one being, but two. A 4 foot tall robed woman with ears that were 3 feet long and bend behind her head and then a 5 foot tall man dressed like a nutcracker equipped with a flute, wearing a cape and a tophat and all of it red. The woman spoke, saying “Remember… we need both of them. Alive… we can’t feast on their persona’s otherwise”. The man spoke, the one Keiji was familiar with, saying “Understood… symphony four then. I shall speak to their souls” and brought the flute to his lips and played. Keiji immediately felt the effect. He felt temptation. Temptation to reveal himself. However, he felt his persona inside him ward the effect off. He understood now some of their methodology. They used powers similar to him… or were similar to the powers he used. Regardless, they used their power to lure people to the woods for some purpose that resulted in a loss of personality and complete lack of awareness that the personality is missing. He bit his lip as the door opened. He wanted to attack, but had to wait. The woman said “Perfect… now direct them to follow me and then you may go get yourself some… I believe we have at least 2 eight year olds camping in the woods tonight”. The man nodded, played a sharp note, then walked away. He knew the expressions on the girls faces well. Clad in their pajamas they had fallen for that flute-players spell. They were about to follow the woman into the woods. He wanted to stop this right then and there. However, he could not do so. He was just a single persona user and there were two enemies. He had only fought one at a time. He decided to not test his luck and wait for the flute-player to be far away. Meanwhile, he resolved himself to follow the woman and ambush her when he could. 

  
  


He followed them to the woods. He hadn’t summoned his persona but with it’s small amount of sensory ability, could sense that the flute-player had remained within 100 meters for most of the trip. It wasn’t until they reached the edge of town that he had his shot. He was 200 meters from the staircase that led up the hill his families shrine was on and they were almost 600 meters until they reached the edge of the forest. Further, the flute-player had been out of his persona’s sensory range for 20 minutes. Now was the time. He acted quickly coming out of hiding and approaching the woman. She was within 50 meters, and now he walked parallel. “You! Stop right there!” He shouted. The woman stopped, turning to look at him. He gasped as the woman he looked at had beauty unlike any he’d seen. “Excuse me, is there an issue?” the woman asked, her tone sultry as a lover yet sweet and innocent as a baby’s laugh. He shivered as his persona was unnerved by this contradictory tone. “Yes… those woman! Where are you taking them at this time of night!?” He demanded, approaching more. The woman replied “The woods… we’re camping. Is that-” but Keiji cut her off, saying “The forest is off-limits at night, except for eight-year olds. They aren’t eight… what are you doing?” in a demanding tone. He was now 10 meters away. The woman smiled and asked “You… know don’t you?”. He didn’t relent until the woman asked “In fact… are you the one who stopped Pied? My… what a naughty boy… I’ll have to punish you for that and this”. He stopped, gasping in surprise. “Pwyll!” He cried out, summoning his persona. The painted helmet-wearing persona appeared, holding its broadsword in hand. The woman gave an astonished gasp and then exclaimed “A persona! A human with a persona! A child no less! Oh happy day my fortune was right! I did get lucky! Come boy! Bring me that delicious persona!”. He was unnerved by this woman’s sudden excitement, but he ignored it. He needed to at least damage her enough to force her to retreat without the girls. 

 

 

The battle begun immediately as chunks of ice formed in the air and the woman yelled “Bufula!”, sending them flying at his persona. His persona dodged one and deflected the others by blocking with its broadsword. He had Pwyll use its sensory powers to investigate the woman's power. The woman retaliated by saying “Probing me with your Persona’s power eh? Go ahead! I’ll even give you a free hit!”. He frowned. He didn’t like this but it’d make things easier. He rushed at her, covering the 10 meters distance quickly. He sensed her weaknesses. Physical projectiles and light, neither of which he had right then. However, that was fine. Pwyll rushed with him, raised its broadsword, and slashed downwards. “Rakukaja!” the woman cried, a barrier forming. It bent as his sword came down. He smirked, saying “I thought it might be this ability… I’ve got one better! Pwyll! Tarukaja!”. The woman looked shocked as Pwyll glowed red and with a surge of strength smashed his sword into her head. He knew however this wasn’t a killing blow. Like his encounter with what the woman called ‘Pied’, he knew for a fact that Rakukaja prevented that blow from being much more than decent blunt force trauma. The woman stumbled onto her back, crying out in pain. “Follow up! Pwyll!” he said “Agi!”. Pwyll responded by gathering heat, then flame into its hand and throwing a small fireball at the woman. The woman backed up, responding with “Bufula!” sending an ice chunk at the fire. It blasted through, but Pwyll deflected it again with its sword. “Tsk…” he muttered “That spell… it’s got a punch… a direct hit and i’m in trouble”. He used Pwyll’s sensory powers to probe for more information. He blinked and realized something. The woman’s power had changed. “What the…?” he gasped and suddenly the woman grew to 7 feet tall and her robes became like hair. “Hehehehe…. Guess I gotta… you’re a competent persona user. Ain’t giving me any openings… so I’m making one! With my own persona!” the woman shouted, leaping forward with great speed. Keiji yelped and called his persona to him and used its strength to get him to leap away. A mere two seconds after this action, the womans clawed hand slammed down, cracking the street. He was in trouble, the woman's strength had suddenly changed and she claimed it was due to the power of persona. He realized he might be in trouble as he summoned his persona again. He needed information. 

 

 

Haru was floating in a sea of blue. She wasn’t sure why, until she realized that it wasn’t a sea of blue, but a void. She knew this as there was no surface. Yet there was light and she was in water. She looked around, confused. Haru wondered how she had ended up there. It was then she saw it. A woman in flowing pale blue robes with golden seams. She had light blue hair and… no face!? Haru had a double take and realized the woman was faceless. She had lines that could be taken as a whole as an expression of some kind but each individual one couldn’t, save the one where the woman’s mouth would be. Further, the woman's skin seemed to be composed of some flexible dull blue color. “Who… what… where…?” she stuttered. She was feeling a lot of anxiety rise from within her. The sea darkened as it did and that increased her anxiety even more. However, she began to feel better. The figure enveloped her in a comforting embrace and it said “I am thou… thou art I… I will take your sorrows and be here for you”. Haru looked up at the womanly figure and stared into its face. Something it said echoed inside her. “You… you are…?” she began but suddenly awoke. She was standing in the middle of the road, facing the entrance to the forest. She blinked and turned, and saw Janna. “Janna…?” she whispered but turned sharply, jumping almost, hearing a crash. Her eyes widened as she saw a horrific sight. A man, slightly bleeding from his head, and a 7 foot tall, hair, blue creature. It looked like werewolves from western myth and media. She wanted to scream but she couldn’t. She then saw Janna’s expression and felt more fear enter her. Blank. Listless. Completely unaware of their surroundings. 

 

 

Then she got a headache. The monster stopped attacking the boy and turned to her. “A persona… she has one too! Oh how lucky, lucky, lucky I am!” the monster cried, and began approached. The boy cried out “No! Pwyll!” and an adult male appeared. It had on a horned painted helm that drooped over the front of its face where its eyes would be, replacing them with painted ones. It wore light armor that looked like chain and held a broadsword. It and the boy were surrounded by a light grey aura of power. It rushed forward, raising the sword to attack. The monster turned away from her, grabbing the sword and punching the summoned warrior in the face away from it. The slash still hurt the monsters hand but the bleeding coming from it was light, she could tell. She screamed as the headache intensified and she heard a voice. “Thou…. Art… I… I am… thou…. Call me…. And I shall awaken… to thine aid….” the voice claimed. She gripped her head, and cried out “I… I can’t!! I…” but stopped as the voice said “Speak… from thine… soul… cry out… thine pain… and I will bear your… burdens!”. The monster turned, clearly alarmed, and cried out “Don’t girl! Don’t you-” but was cut off itself as what the boy called Pwyll slashed at its back. Then it changed into a 4-foot tall robed woman whom turned, and cried out “Bufula!” and sent ice chunks at the Pwyll. This time, Pwyll took the hits, sending itself and the boy flying into the bushes, blood coming out of their mouths. She cried out “Persona!”, the only word that came to her mind. The headache vanished, and all her anxiety vanished as well. She sighed in relief and looked up, but stopped. She saw it. The figure before her was the one she dreamed of. “Wh… what…?” she stuttered. “I am Deidre… the manifestation of your sorrows… I shall take your burdens… and protect you from the harsh world!” the figure said, though not vocally. She heard the voice in her head… like it came from her. She knew it didn’t though. That’s when the boy cried out “Haru! Defend yourself! She’s after you!”She looked past the being that called itself Deidre and saw it. The woman had turned to her. 

 

 

“You! Persona girl! Leave, and I’ll spare your life! I’ll even convince the court to leave you and your family be!” it said. She was hesitant and looked at Janna… and felt an unusual feeling. Bravery. She felt like resisting. She turned to the woman and said “Only if she goes!”. The woman stared, then laughed. “No. I think… for such rudeness, I’m going to devour all three of you! Behold my power!” the woman cried out, growing to 13 feet in height now, the woman's skin becoming light blue and two horns sprouted from their forehead. She felt scared but remembered what the figure that appeared said. “Al… alright.. D-deidre… a-attack!” she said. Deidre looked up at the face of the woman, held its arms out, and fired out a gust of wind. Lightning sparked from the tall monsters horns and fired down at the wind, both canceling each other out. Deidre moved and waved its arm, a barrier surrounding itself and her. “Rakukaja!? You have that!?” the monster bellowed, rushing at Deidre specifically. Deidre aimed and fired another gust of wind at the monsters feet as it rushed, then began to back up. Haru followed suit, grabbing Janna and pulling her. “No! Get-” the monster began, but yelled as the wind burst hit her feet and made her trip and fall, her face slamming onto the concrete of the road. The boy from before took advantage and had Pwyll rushed forward and cut the monsters ankles before launching itself into the air and throwing a fireball onto its back. The robe caught fire and the monster reverted back to the woman. The woman growled angrily, saying “Damn you… if I wasn’t hungry, this would’ve gone differently!”. 

 

 

Keiji was amazed. The girl had suddenly awoken from her slumber but was in great distress. Suddenly, the creature before him, like a werewolf from some bad western fiction, turned its attention to the newly awakened girl and demanded she cease her actions… and he took advantage of it being distracted and had Pwyll attack. It reverted back to the woman, which didn’t heal its injury but made it less severe. The woman turned and used ‘Bufula’ again, this time hitting him and sending him flying into the bushes. That however gave the girl an opening. The girl cried out for her persona anyway and summoned it. A womanly persona with no discernable face save some lines to give the illusion of expression in pale blue robes with dull blue skin and with light blue hair. The woman responded to the girls shy, scared, and stuttering request for offense. The persona responded as he expected. It went on the offensive but unlike what he expected, it showed… ingenuity. It responded to the creature’s advance by using ‘Rakukaja’ and in its hesitation fired an attack on its legs, tripping it. He cried out “Pwyll! Attack!” and it responded by rushing forward rapidly and cutting its ankles. “Pwyll! Into the air and use Agi! Burn its fur!” he cried out, pulling himself from the bushes. His persona did just that, making the woman revert to her previous transformation. He was understanding the woman's powers now. For each persona they injured, that was a persona this creature lost from its arsenal. He stood and said “You’ve lost, creature from the forest! Retreat and we’ll spare you!”. The woman growled and said “I’ve still got plenty of persona to fall back on! I’m far from done!”. He sighed and said “Fine. Have it your way! Pwyll!”. Pwyll rushed forward. The woman clearly changed persona as her robes morphed into armor and morphed partially into a shield and sword. She blocked the attack from Pwyll and proceeded to stab at him, but Pwyll avoided it, then backed off. He looked at Haru and Janna and yelled “Hurry! Escape! I’ll hold her off and flee once you’re clear!”. The creature pressed the attack, rushing forward shield first. 

 

 

Haru had been told to run, but she didn’t want to. Despite the fear in her, she felt like she could fight. “Deidre… what can you do?” she asked. Information flowed into her head and she realized what it could do. Rakukaja, Garu, and Dia. The first one was a defensive ability, the second was the wind attack she witnessed… and the last one was a healing ability. “Deidre! Use… Dia on the boy” She requested and Deidre responded by holding both hands out to Keiji. Keiji looked alarmed, but when he glowed green and his wounds vanished, he looked relieved. “Thanks!” He cried out to her. Haru just nodded and said “Deidre… Rakukaja on them!”. Deidre did so as the armored woman's sword came down on an open Pwyll, but the barrier blocked most of the damage. “Grr… damn you, girl!” the woman cried turning. A mistake, as Pwyll fired a fireball into the woman's head, lighting her hair on fire. The woman screamed as her hair was fully engulfed in fire. “Damn you! Damn you both! How dare you hurt me so!” the creature screamed, shifting through form after form before their rolling around put the flame out. She had taken that as an opportunity to reposition herself. She dragged Janna as she ran for where the boy was, who motion for her to come. When she finally approached he said “Good job! Now run! While she’s distracted!”. She never agreed more. She put her arm around Janna and began running. Shockingly, Janna ran with her. This shed some light on some things. From what she could tell, the spell inhibited their sensibilities. It put them in a sort of dream-like stupor. This made it easy for the creature to coerce and guide them to the forest for whatever nefarious it had planned. However, it had a flaw. It made it easy for her to guide Janna away, even at a fast pace. The creature cried out, smoke rising from the remains of its hair, now in its normal form. They were 50 meters away as it began to chase them. However, it couldn’t keep pace. That was until the robes became feathers and it grew wings. It went from only a few meters every couple of minutes to the full 50 meter distance they established in a mere 10 minutes. However, she knew this creatures weakness. “Deidre” she said, holding her locket. It glowed and Deidre appeared. She pointed to the creature and said as it began to dive “Deidre! Use Garu!” and Deidre, with a wave of its hand, sent a blast of wind up at it. It attempted to dodge, but the wing was clipped, causing it to spiral to the side and slam into the ground, cratering the sidewalk. She saw the blood spray into the air… no… not blood. Some sort of black liquid. Almost like oil but more watery. 

 

 

Regardless, her and the boy managed to escape. They had ran quite a distance, at least 20 or so blocks, and the creature had not shown signs of appearing. The boy still insisted they hide inside the bushes of a nearby house. Their persona’s had long retreated. She was surprised as they saw, through the bushes, that the robed woman landed on the street. A broom flew out from under her and into her hand. Her robes had also become much skimpier than her previous flowy, modest robes. The hood had also disconnected and turned into a wide-brimmed hat with a symbol of an eye encased in a sun. The creature looked around, its facial features, their true features, on full display. The mask had melted away and revealed the truth. Red eyes, white pupils, black sclera. They withheld gasps and watched as the creature looked around, swung its broom around sending wind bursts. It hit them and it felt like a punch in the gut but their persona’s hands appeared and covered their mouth, preventing them from crying out or making noise. Each time, the creature said “Garula” the wind burst happened. It at this moment had a hooked nose, a few warts on her face, and very crooked teeth. A far cry from the fair and beautiful visage they saw. It swung the broom, shouting, “Dammit!” and send a garula attack out to a random house, splintering it heavily. The creature jumped on the broom, yelling “You escaped this time, brats, but I’ll get you tomorrow and I’ll make you all suffer! So swears Morgan, Court Sorceress of the Court of the Unseen Fairy God!!!” and flew off. 

 

 

Keiji was relieved. They had survived the encounter. It was a different being that he fought and it was a hard fight. He had fought the flute-playing creature and while it had proved difficult he managed to save Hatsume. This one was far more troublesome. He looked at the girl and Hatsume and said “Thanks… we saved her…”. “Will… will she be fine…?” the girl asked, gesturing to Hatsume… whom he knew as Janna. He nodded and said “Yeah… let’s just get her back to her parents house…” but the girl replied sharply, saying “She was staying at my place… she even told her parents… if she showed up like this…”. Keiji understood and nodded, saying “Alright… I’ll escort you home. It’s already been an hour… what’s your name? I’m Keiji Noori”. The girl looked away, a bit shyly, which he thought was cute, and said “Haru… Haru Matsuhada”. He simply smiled, standing and saying “Then let's get going” and offered a hand to her. She accepted it, then got Hatsume to her feet and he followed them home. On their doorstep, Haru turned and said “Thank you again… I… I’m so grateful… who knows what would’ve happened to us…”. Keiji waved his hand dismissively, saying “Just doing my citizenly duty…. Sleep well, Matsuhada” and walked away. Haru got Janna inside so they could sleep and recover. They both would feel the effects of the fight in the morning… but they had survived. 


	4. Chapter 4: Janna's Awakening

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Same disclaimer as before. Moving on. 
> 
> Pied's Theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v49KByAwxew&list=PLrEmMfUivFiMC6wmf0jWC7_a6QQ7_ELMD&index=2&t=0s
> 
> Same as before. copy+paste into address bar or right click+search google.

**_Chapter 3_ **

_ Welcome Back _

 

Haru slowly woke up in the tent. Outside, she heard a voice beckon to her, saying “You’ve returned. Please, join us”. She slowly got out of the bed, her clothes remaining the pink pajamas she had put on the night before. She wandered out of the blue tent into the blue clearing. Igor… that was the name of the formally dressed man with a large nose that sat across from her. He sat, complete this time with a desk, a paper on it, and a feather pen. Igor smiled and said “Ah… hello. Welcome back. It seems you have finally awakened”. Haru sat on the log on the other side as Helena stared at her with seemingly emotionless eyes. She asked a bit sleepily “Awakened…?”. Igor nodded, saying “Yes… to the power of persona. Though your power is quite… different from others”. Haru stared at Igor, asking “Persona…?”. “Persona is the power to make one’s mask manifest” Igor explained “The mask you wear to talk to friends… the mask you wear when alone and hurting… the mask you wear for your enemies. Your power is the ability to summon these masks into the physical world… no normal person will see it though”. Haru was silent for a moment as Helena stated “Your power is special. The power of the wild card is yours. The wild card lets you control and summon many persona… most people only have one that alters slightly as their life progresses”. Haru looked between them, asking “This… is real… isn’t it…?”. Igor nodded, saying “Yes… it is. The town you live in is the hunting grounds for otherworldly beings… that said, it is not necessarily your responsibility”. Helene took the paper from Igor’s desk and brought it to her. She stared at the paper, which looked like a contract. Helena said “This is a contract… if you do nothing, then your down will experience disaster in a year… if you act, we will help you. This contract stipulates this…. The only catch is you will accept responsibility for all your actions”. 

 

 

Silence ruled the space. For several minutes, nothing was said until finally Igor spoke, saying “Helena… we were to present this next time, after explaining our services… though I suppose it doesn’t hurt her to read the contract over. Go ahead Haru and do so… you have until two nights from now to sign it… and tonight is an ordeal. Failure will result in the loss of an important ally… sadly, I cannot go over what we will offer beyond saying the contract explains it…. For you are about to awaken. Have a nice day, dear guest”. With that, Haru felt a desire to sleep wash over her like a gentle ocean wave. She stood as Igor said “You will return here if you sign the contract before midnight in two days. There, we will explain the details of our services… if you do not, then you’ve accepted fate. Have a nice day”. Haru nodded and stood, turning and heading for the tent. She slowly slipped into the bed and let sleep claim her… for a few moments before she awoke and was in her bed in her room in the town she had moved to, Hanayosei. 

 

 

She sat up, looking around. It was her room. However, there was something different. No… something had been added. She saw it on her desk, on the other side of the room. The same paper that Helena had handed to her. In fact… she recalled another dream about that space. She hadn’t previously, or perhaps she had and had written it off as a weird dream. However, the things said in there were all too real. As a test she put a hand to the locket she always wore, of her and her mother. Her now deceased mother. She focused and whispered “Deidre”. She stared baffled at the womanly figure that aided her the night before. This time, it was silent. After five minutes, the figure dissipated. She heard someone nearby ask “Yoooo…. Why are ya star’in at the ceiling? There a spider or somethin’?”. She looked and saw Janna in the doorway. She had occupied the guest room. She shook her head, saying “I thought there was… but it was… just a trick of lighting”. Janna stared at her sleepily, saying “‘Kay… well then I’ll wait for ya downstairs. Don’t make me wait too long okay?”. Haru nodded, watching as Janna left. Tonight… Igor hadn’t explicitly stated that it was Janna being taken that was the ordeal, but based on recent events, Haru wondered… was Janna ‘their’ next target? She slowly got out of bed and changed. It was a bit late in the morning, she and Janna had to get to school soon. 

 

 

Keiji had awoken himself with some soreness. His battle the night before against the thing that called itself ‘Morgan’ had done a number on him. Thankfully, the girl, named Haru Matsuhada, had healed him before he came home. Even though the bleeding stopped, the pain remained. He almost didn’t want to get up, but that would risk his parents knowing what he did at night. That was something, especially now, that absolutely had to not happen. The information the creature gave was information he never expected. The creature called itself the court sorceress of the court of the unseen fairy god. It was slightly different from the god they worshipped but barely. They worshipped the “Invisible Fairy God”. The creature served the “Unseen Fairy God”. Both essentially meant the same thing with insignificant differences, so he felt safe in assuming the creature was a servant of said god. This meant that not only did they serve a being actively praying on the citizens of Hanayosei, but also a being that commanded a court of strange, otherworldly things. He finished making breakfast and served it, greeting his family as he always did and sitting down to eat. His grandfather was mostly silent, except as Keiji finished eating. His grandfather asked “Keiji…. I have a question… do you know of a girl named Hatsume Kintori?”. Keiji looked up and shook his head, saying “I know of her but I’m not associated… she’s kind of…. Wild”. His grandfather nodded, saying “Good boy… but listen. I want you to follow her today…. Her parents reported something odd…. They heard singing and it made them feel concerned for Janna, so they called her new friends number, only for there to be no answer…. After several failed calls, they went to the house of her new friend and got no answer…. And it wasn’t until this morning the Hatsume called and confirmed she was fine. Something is strange and I want you to figure it out”. Keiji stared at his grandfather and nodded, saying “Understood, Ojiisan”. The grandfather sighed, eating more, and after swallowing saying “As the Noori family, any paranormal troubles the people have, we are to help them. Thus was decreed by Menimienai yōsei no kami… our patron god”. Keiji looked at his grandfather, nodding. He said “I understand Ojiisan… I will not fail” and stood, having finished breakfast. He cleaned his dishes and hurried out the door. 

 

 

He knew full well what was going on. However, he knew he couldn’t simply shrug it off. His grandfather gave him a direct order. Further, he suspected that ‘they’ complained to him about his actions… though he wasn’t sure. Morgan, the only one who saw his face, never once mentioned his lineage. It was likely she simply didn’t care. He wasn’t sure. Regardless, he needed to speak to Haru. Haru had awoken to the power of ‘Persona’ and so now had a duty like him to protect the town. Further, he knew for a fact Morgan would come again tonight. It was simply inevitable. They had humiliated her, there was no way someone as prideful as she had acted would simply let the slight they delivered go. No. He had to coordinate for an ambush against Morgan. He arrived at school soon enough and before he could walk to Janna, the girl his grandfather mentioned, and Haru, a friend of his stopped him. Sai. His friend had a serious face and said “Yo… man. Don’t. They’re trouble”. He looked at him, raising an eyebrow. He was about to ask when Sai said “I saw her. She went to the woods… by your place. Well… they did. Who knows what happened there. Everyone knows the rule. She broke it…”. He was silent. He looked to them, then Sai, saying “Sorry. Gotta watch her. Ojiisan’s orders… but thanks. I can report that to him. It’s… very strange”. Sai nodded and said “Alright… now come on. I have some news… it's about my older brother. He’s coming back from his studies abroad. Wanna talk about you meeting him”. He laughed… that sounded nicer than what was coming tonight. 

 

 

Keiji went through school as normal but kept an eye on Janna. He was paying attention for any peculiarities. After all, they had called twice… most were only called once normally. He wanted to make sure there were no adverse effects. At first he was willing to say nothing strange was up with her… until he accidentally spied some of her songwriting. He was passing her desk to talk to Keisuke and noticed one line in particular. ‘It calls to me. In the night, in the dead of night, I hear it sing, like a moth sings to the flame’. He couldn’t say he was disturbed but he knew it wasn’t good news. He was fearing Janna remembered the night before. He had to find out. However, he was at a loss about how to broach the topic. Keisuke noticed his hesitation and asked silently “Whats up?”. He was hesitant but said “I just saw some of her song lyrics…. One line… stands out” and recited it. Keisuke stared at him, then glanced at Janna who was working intently on the song. Keisuke looked at him and said “Sai told me about your job… let me help. I live near her place”. Keiji was silent but nodded, saying “Alright… keep an eye on her house… if she leaves, call my cell. Alright?”. Keisuke nodded and said “Got it”. The bell rang for the lunch period to end. He sighed and headed back to his seat. 

 

  
  
Haru had tested Deidre multiple times that day. No one reacted to Deidre’s presence. The only reaction she got was when she had Deidre pull someone's hair. A boy who was one of the rougher types. She at that point didn’t expect him to react, but was shocked when he did. He seemed confused and at first was aggressive with his friend, but then let it go. She referred to Igor’s words and knew now that the dream was real. Deidre was no hallucination. It was a real thing that spawned from her and could affect the physical world, but only she or those like her could perceive. It was a relief to know, since fighting the otherworldly beings that would no doubt come for Janna would be a problem if she had to be secretive. However, the nature of ‘Persona’ seemed to make that easy. She just needed to hide her identity at night. Of course that might be a problem. One of that ‘court’ had seen her face. That made things complicated. She could only hope the blow they dealt to Morgan’s pride would keep her quiet. In the meantime, she needed to protect Janna. She had not been the only target that night and she was starting to piece things together. Especially due to the rumor about the unofficial town rules. 

 

 

Thankfully she got to see Janna during lunch time. She went to the cafeteria during it in hopes Janna would seek her out. It was quite unusual for a japanese high school to have one, and she was quite shocked to see it at first. She only didn’t because she, to her shame, was wallowing in self-pity. Janna, in her rude, boisterous manner announced herself and sat down next to her. “Whatcha doin mouse?” Janna said, eating rudely. “Not much” Haru said, hesitating. She half wanted to not ask but knew it was important. “Do you… remember anything from last night?” she asked. Janna stopped, stared at her, then gave a sly smile. “I didn’t do nuthin I promise… but you did kick your blanket off and if I didn’t know better, you were com’in onta me” Janna responded, smile sly and cocky. Haru’s face went red and was about to ask more as Janna laughed, saying “Wow mouse, you really fell for that? Jeez… you're such a mouse… good thing your my groupie”. Haru’s face reddened more as she said “J-janna!”. Janna just laughed more, finishing her lunch. Haru willed Deidre to appear, then looked at her. Janna’s demeanor changed. Janna went from happy and laughing to silent and serious. “Haru… do you… feel that?” Janna asked. Haru nodded and said “Yeah… like someone is near... “. Janna was silent for several minutes, then sighed sadly and said “Hey… come on. Let’s skip school… I… wanna share some new music I made”. Haru nodded, willing Deidre away and stood up. She wasn’t finished with her lunch, but her friend seemed bothered by something and she wanted to help. She followed Janna. 

 

 

Janna took them to the same spot they visited the day prior. Janna took out her guitar and began to tune it, asking “Hey… what’d you think of my last song…?”. Haru looked at Janna, thinking about it, and said “Honestly…? It was sad… it had… a sense of longing in it…”. Janna finished tuning and tested the strings, saying “I see…. That makes sense….. Honestly? Kinda feel that way a lot lately… especially before I sleep”. Janna began to play and continued, saying “I feel like… something’s missing from me. Somethin that’s essential… something I need… but I don’t know where it is… until recently”. Haru’s eyes widened as Janna played the song she recently edited more intensely. Haru felt tears come to her eyes, a sense of guilt heavy in her chest as Janna said, staring right at Haru with an intensity she didn’t think she’d ever feel, “The forest….. And I’ve never been there except once when my dad took me camping….. However, your face tells me you know something… don’t you?”. Haru looked away, unable to handle Janna’s accusatory gaze. She finally choked out, somewhat against her will “I… do…”. Janna stopped playing and continued her questioning, asking “What do you know, Haru? What the hell could an outsider like you understand!?” with a tone of anger. Haru spoke quickly, hoping to abate Janna’s wrath, saying “We were attacked last night! I came too on the road we walked to the forest and we fought them off!”. Janna’s stare turned into one of curiosity and she said “Well… seems you’re not just some mouse… talk”. 

 

 

Janna smirked as Haru finished her explanation. She reached out and stroked the head of Deidre. “So this is a persona… its hair but its really not… it's just what I think hair should feel like” Janna commented before pulling her hand away. Haru recalled Deidre as Janna said “You’re being honest…. Which means I was played. Well then…. We need to return the favor!”. Haru looked at Janna now, shocked. “Your… not mad at me…?” she asked. Janna laughed and said “Nah way! You came clean… and without too much torture. So nah. Sins forgiven, blessed sinner. Still… we’re in a right mess huh?”. Haru nodded slowly, looking at her. “Maybe… we can… ambush them…?” she asked. Janna looked at her, stared for a minute, then smiled saying “I like the way you think… yeah… lets do it… you’ll play along and break me outta the trance it puts me in once it takes me ta the parta me it took!”. Haru stared at Janna but smiled and nodded, saying “Okay… I’ll trust your plan… it’s great”. She felt flattered that Janna trusted her with such a responsibility. Janna said “Man… mouse, I knew you’d be valuable… but who thought you’d finally bring me what I really desired…? I’m glad I gambled on befriendin you”. Haru nodded and said “Thank you for being my friend… Janna”. 

  
  


The plan was on. Janna would stay with her that night again… and when the time came, play at being hypnotized and follow whatever came to collect them. She suspected that it would be the thing that called itself ‘Morgan’ but she had no real way of knowing. After all, they weren’t human. Even so, Janna trusted her to snap her out of it once they properly entered the forest and arrived to where Janna’s missing piece was. Janna and her went to her house. Janna went up to her room to setup while she talked to Hana. She knew he’d have questions. Hana stared at her, asking “Haru… what’s going on?”. Haru answered with what she knew was a lie, but a necessary one. She couldn’t tell Hana the truth… he’d make them leave and abandon Janna to her fate. “Janna writes a lot of music and lately has been inspired by me… and apparently she’s avoiding her parents…” she answered. Hana stared at her, stern in his observation for if she was lying. He simply nodded and said “Alright. That’s innocent enough. Dinner will be ready at 9. Let her know to have her hands washed by then, okay?”. She nodded and walked upstairs to her room. As she entered, Janna said with a smirk “Good job… and shockingly perceptive. When did you figure out you were my muse?” with a tone of innuendo. Haru’s face went red and she was about to ask if Janna was serious when Janna laughed and said “Kidding, kidding… well. Mostly. You’ve been inspiring but I get inspired a lot… now. Let's make some music so your pops doesn’t get suspicious”. She thought about correcting Janna, but decided against it. All that mattered was getting ready for tonight. It’d be another night of conflict… and staying up later than she should. 

 

 

That night it happened. She had been sleeping so she’d be ready for it. She had silently set her phone to a silent alarm to wake her, putting it in the pocket of her one-piece pajamas. It went off and as it did she heard the music. Janna, who had gone to sleep because her becoming entranced was vital to the plan and being awake might have jepordized that, was up and going to the door. She quickly followed after, her phone in her pocket. She felt a bit weird though. It was like the music was trying to invade her soul but failing. It felt… odd. Regardless, she took note of Janna’s general demeanor and copied it. She had to make sure they weren’t going to catch on. As she left the house she kept her outer demeanor empty and lacking anything of substance, like Janna, but mentally noted something. Morgan wasn’t here. Instead it was a different ‘being’ before them. 

 

 

The figure was somewhat on the small side for being masculine. He was only five feet tall. He wore a red british soldiers uniform with some shoulder pads and golden tassels hanging from it, buttoned up and closed. The being wore red silk pants and red boots. Further, he wore a red, flowing cape and a red tophat. The only thing red he didn’t wear, beyond the tassels hanging from his shoulder pads, was his silver-grey flute that he was playing. It was playing a tune that was rather obscure on the internet but somehow wasn’t. The tune’s name didn’t come to mind, all she knew was that it was hypnotizing. She felt it trying to coax her into giving in. She didn’t let it fully. She let it work on her body but her ‘Persona’ prevented it from infecting her further. It continued playing as it turned and walked away. That’s when a horrifying truth became real. Some children were leaving their houses. All of them small. She was now afraid their plan might fall apart. 

 

 

It took a couple of hours. Thanks to the beings music, her bodies fatigue was never felt. In fact, she was certain it would have none. However, her mental fatigue was a bit high. It was because her persona was busy warding off the music's power from infecting her mind and soul. It had been doing so since it visited her house. Finally, the forest parted and gave way to a rather bizarre and weird sight. Before her was a sort of concert hall… stumps to serve as chairs, wood-carved tables with prepared food and drink. However on the far side there was a large, carved out tree. The thing looked like a stage. Moonlight poured in and reflected off of blooming flowers to form stage lights. She saw the things that manipulated them… imp-like creatures that were purple and veiny. Her body sat at a table near the front, while the kids took seats. The being took a seat in a booth made from another carved out tree. If she thought about it, it was the VIP booth you’d see in a theatre. The being kept playing as Janna went to the stage and those imp things went onto it, presenting a guitar, already perfectly tuned if Janna taking it and testing it to produce the sounds she was familiar with were anything to go by. However, the appearance of those… ‘things’ disturbed her. They were actually green and held spoons over their backs like they were large clubs. In the curve of the spoons were a single flame. They had pointed ears and leered at Janna hungrily. They leapt backwards, then turned and leapt into the shadows. It was then she decided to end the farce. She had to wake Janna now. Her persona sent the music’s magic out of her and she stood. The being playing the music turned to her immediately as Deidre appeared. 

 

 

She rushed towards the stage, Deidre following suit. It immediately cast Rakukaja on her and itself, then turned and launched Garu at an approaching imp. She continued to advance, running up the steps. She halted as a pair of the imps dropped from the trees in front of her. Deidre turned and fired the garu ability at them, launching one into a wall and making it burst into a series of shadows that fled into the forest. The other launched the flame in its spoon at her, though it looked more like the fireball inside spawned another one and that was the one launched. She avoided it and looked at Janna as Deidre finished off that one too. Janna had begun to play and it was an eerie, haunting melody. Nothing like what Janna enjoyed playing. She turned and ran for her, ignoring the imps behind her. She instead focused on the three that surrounded Janna and sent fireballed at her. One slammed into her shoulder, making her hesitate and another made her knee buckle. She reacted quickly, pulling her cell phone out and chucking it at one. It was too shocked to react and the impact shockingly caved its head in, making it split into shadows that fled. Deidre cast Garu twice by now, taking care of the other two. By now, the being in the booth seemed focused on them. She stood and approached Janna, cupping Janna’s face and making her face her and said “Janna! Wake up!”. Deidre likewise placed its hands on her head and she could see Janna regain her senses. Their plan had succeeded. That was, until ‘it’ jumped down, its music ending. 

 

 

“Well, well, well” the being said as it landed “I am quite surprised. Morgan lied when she said she got your persona…. Guess that means she lied about rewarding you for sacrificing yourself”. “Yes… as you can see, I’m perfectly fine, and ready to fight you!” she said aloud. Janna looked confused. She turned and said “Janna! Remember our plan? We were going to fight ‘it’ together!”. Janna looked at the thing, then her, and the imps nearby. “Haru… what… no way… what are… these things…?” Janna said slowly, her eyes widening “I thought… they just drugged you… they’re real monsters…?”. Haru’s confidence dropped immediately. Deidre began to fade as she asked “Janna…? What’s… wrong…?”. The being laughed, getting both of their attentions. “My, my… you truly don’t understand… what did you think would happen? You’ve brought her to the forbidden garden… her mind cannot comprehend without its persona… with just a shadow, that misses its other half, her mind cannot possibly comprehend, let alone gather confidence, to face reality. She’ll likely go into shock and die… and it’s your fault, Haru Matsuhada…. Though… you’re familiar with that no?” the being said, scolding and mocking her. She backed away from Janna a bit, asking “Wait.. what? No, I” she started, but it cut her off, approaching the edge of the stage. Janna backed up with her. “Don’t play coy… you ruined a man at his peak. What do you think he did?”. Haru’s eyes widened as the being continued, it said “Don’t worry. He didn’t kill himself… no, he’s on the path of death though… he’ll arrive any day now… he’ll break into your home… and your dear, dear Hana Tsurugi will gun him down, ending the pitiful tale of Yoshinori Matsuhada” with a tone of clear mockery “And this girl will have a heart attack soon, ending her life…. 2 people in just a weeks time. Not many can claim a death toll that high in the modern world”. Haru was about to say something, when suddenly the being cried out as fire erupted from its back. A voice came from the entrance that said “Matsuhada! Kintori! Don’t listen to it!”. 

 

 

Keiji had barely made it. Keisuke called around 7pm, saying that Janna was staying at Haru’s house, according to Hatsume’s parents. He instantly knew what was up. He had lost Janna after lunch. He knew she had a habit of skipping class, but she made sure to return. However, when she didn’t he cursed his luck. Thus when he heard this, he realized what was going on. They were planning together to confront the beings from the forest. He wasn’t sure if Haru was stupid, brave, or both but he knew it’d end in tragedy. He’d noted her low self-esteem and knew it’d become a weakness in the heat of battle… a detriment since she’d be alone. She might’ve thought Janna could help, but this wasn’t true. Janna would get paralyzed before the being easily and it could then pressure Matsuhada with her fears and regrets. However, thanks to Keisuke he caught on faster than he would’ve if left to his own devices and headed to Haru’s house. From there, he simply followed them through the forest. Specifically, he followed the music. His persona kept it from influencing him like before. As he entered the clearing, the creature was doing what he feared. He had Pwyll launch an agi spell and called out “Matsuhada! Kintori! Don’t listen to it! It’s just trying to get you to not attack!”. 

 

 

He saw Deidre react instantly by blasting the being in the face with the same wind ability it used again Morgan. The being yelled and fell backwards onto it’s back. Haru then took that opportunity to use Rakukaja on Janna. Now he had to get to the stage. However, multiple spoon-wielding imps blocked him. “Out of my way!” he shouted, having his persona, Pwyll, slash them away. He saw some drop near Janna and Haru but both fought. Janna used the guitar given to her and Haru used Deidre. Things were looking good… until ‘it’ got up. It turned to him and said “You’ll be a good ally… come little child… help me” and brought the flute to its mouth. “No!” he cried and had Pwyll fire an agi spell. It simply twirled away and began to play its tune. He felt his mind swim and his body numb. He knew what was happening. It was controlling him. The damn thing had waited until his persona was away to do it. He tried to recall his persona but it was too late. His mind went blank and he lost feeling in his whole body…. No. He could still feel. However, he couldn’t use that feeling in his body. He could only be aware of what he was doing… and it terrified him. He was going right for Haru. The being had correctly identified the defensive one of them…. Haru was not the aggressive persona user between them. 

 

 

Haru had been encouraged by Keiji’s words. She fought the imps flooding them with Deidre’s healing and wind powers. Fire would hit one of them and Deidre would heal it. Janna had finally seen Deidre but had no time to really respond beyond a “So that’s what I felt!”. Janna was still clearly panicked, but her self-preservation instincts kicked in and attacked the approaching imps. Things were going fine… until suddenly they stopped and backed off. She heard music playing. She turned and yelped as a fireball flew by her head. The being stared at her intently, and Keiji’s eyes held a false anger. “What the hell!? Why in the… wait, does that Noori brat have a persona too!?” Janna asked, her tone panicked. “Y-yes!” Haru answered, scared “And he’s a lot stronger than me!”. Janna looked scared too and asked “Haru… are… are we gonna die…?”. Haru felt her heart sink as she looked at Janna, who wore a mask of fear. Haru was about to give into despair… when it vanished. She looked at Janna and grabbed her by her arms and said “No… we won’t… we’ll be fine… we just… have to work together!”. Janna stared and nodded. She turned to Keiji who continued his approach and she said “Janna…. I’m going to make an opening… that barrier will last and soften blows until…. Just run when you see the opening… okay?”. Janna stared and nodded at her. She wasn’t sure where this courage was rising from but she knew she had to try this. She knew she had to fight Keiji and the being!

  
  


Her fight began almost instantly. Pwyll appear and rushed for her. She responded by summoning Deidre and waiting until its sword arced towards her to use Garu. She had Deidre aim at its wrist… as she thought, the move disarmed it, it’s sword flying from its hand. She then backed up as Pwyll launched a fireball at her, aiming where she was. She ignored Pwyll now and had Deidre target the being. However, it simply jumped away from her attack. She kept an eye on where Pwyll was aiming and kept dodging while firing Garu’s at the being. She created an elaborate game of hot potato. One of them would get hit and it may not spell doom, but it’d end poorly for the one hit. However this wasn’t her goal… it was to get Janna away. She looked at saw Janna staring. Her glance signaled to Janna to run. So, Janna did. She leapt from the stage onto a table and began to jump from table to table. This made the being paused, which she tried to capitalize on by launching a Garu spell, but like before it leapt away onto another table. It began playing again and she now saw Keiji turn from her. She had Deidre turn and fire a Garu right at his feet, making him and by extension Pwyll, trip. This gave Janna the chance she needed. She leapt by Keiji and was heading for the entrance, or what was for her the exit. However, it was then the tables turned. While she had focused on Keiji, she had left herself fully open. The being stopped playing for a brief moment to put Deidre in a headlock, and begin choking her. She gasped for air, crying out before her lungs were completely cut off. 

 

 

Hatsume Kintori. That had been her birth name. Given to her by her father… her deadbeat, absentee father. She had no idea where he was. He had vanished sometime after her birth and her mother refused to speak of him. He had been a truck driver for a local company but one day had vanished. Thanks to that, her mother had to work four jobs in order to make ends meet for them. Yet despite this, her mother showed a gesture of kindness and after she showed an appreciation for rock music bought her a guitar. It was a used one, and in not very good condition. Yet despite this, it was an incredibly kind gesture. Her response? She berated her mother for being so thoughtless and spending money so frivolously. Yet she accepted it. It’d be rude not to, right? This was the kind of girl Hatsume had been since eight. She wasn’t sure why and no shrink could figure her out. ‘She’s missing something’. ‘She’s suffering from a behavior disorder’. All bullshit, far as she was concerned. Yet, something about it upset her. She always made it known, throwing a fit and destroying the psychologists office. She’d even been arrested one time. A veritable badass punk was the persona she had, and yet this mouse of a girl, Haru, was standing up for her while she wanted to cower and accept her fate. Yet, she accepted it. Wasn’t her fault the girl was stupid and letting herself die so she could live another day…. Then she heard it. “Wha-!!!” Haru had began to scream but it was cut off, replaced by a silent, low wheezing sound. She stopped and turned, seeing Keiji slowly getting up…. And the being that had kidnapped her choking the one friend she had made. No… groupie. Haru was just a groupie, easily replaceable. Yet…. she felt sad. Panicked… afraid as she watched it slowly choke the persona of, and by extension, her friend. “Run, Hatsume… no… Janna. You live tonight since you managed to get so far. Consider it a reward… I’ll just kill this girl and devour her ‘Persona’ and ‘Shadow’... and then his” it said to her, it’s voice in her mind. Likely transmitted via the music. She was about to turn to leave, and let Haru meet her end… when she heard another voice. 

 

 

Her surroundings went black and a single light shimmered from behind her. She turned and saw a japanese man in their 20’s sitting cross legged with a Biwa resting between them and then his shoulder. He had bandages on his head styled into a ponytail hairstyle. The monk wore a pair of sunglasses and headphones, very modern ones too and the sunglasses were completely tinted on one side. His robes featured sheet music iconography and kanji for various things that interested her, like a line from ‘Beat It’ by Michael Jackson. It also had bandaged hands. The being she saw was where the other being had been and it sighed, repeating itself and saying “Ya really satisfied? Leavin’ things like this? Runnin off like a chicken?”. Janna scoffed, saying “The hell!? Who the hell are you to slander me like-” but was cut off as it said “You’re about to let the one girl who didn’t immediately assume you were a terrible person for how you acted die. All to save your own skin… for who knows how long?”. Janna gritted her teeth, looking away and saying “I… I’ll just tell my mom” and was cut off as it said “Yes… have your destitute, indebted, poor mother bail you out again…. All to save a life that probably isn’t worth it”. “What the hell would you have me do!? I can’t fight these things! Not even they can and they have persona’s!” Janna yelled, tears welling in her eyes…. Tears. Something she hadn’t felt for years. The being silently asked her, it’s voice omnipresent, “Then call for me… say my name. Grab hold and pull me from my prison… only you can, Hatsume! Stand up and fight for what’s yours! Don’t let them control you any longer!”. Janna growled a bit, rattling her brain for how to do what it said… then she stopped. She knew how… she knew the beings name now. “Hoichi… that’s your name… isn’t it…? I read about you in class… one of the few times I attended” Janna said to herself. The being smirked and nodded, lifting its own Bachi and asked, “Shall we give him the concert of a lifetime?”. 

 

 

Haru felt her world darken. She had been choked for a solid minute and a half… she had heard the being would let Janna go for now… it made her happy. She was sad she was going to die, but she was also happy that her life at least extended anothers. This was her thought when suddenly, the pressure on her throat lessened. She used that moment to have Deidre use garu to push itself away from the being. It did so and wrested itself from its grasp. She spun, but was shocked. The music had stopped, freeing Keiji from its power and saw it convulsing. An image shimmered over it, that of some kind of robed guitarist. She turned to Keiji, who was coming to. Pwyll had vanished. Then she saw Janna, standing and trembling. “What are you doing!?” she cried “Run!”. Then Janna yelled “Not this time!”. She stopped as Janna yelled “I’m tired of running! We made a plan… and… I’m sticking to it! I’m fighting! I want… I want my Persona, Hoichi, back!”. Haru felt encouraged by Janna’s bravery but knew things were bad. Before she could speak though, the being cried out, screaming in a guttural, low tone. She shivered and turned, and saw it. The robed monk had pulled itself halfway out of the being. “No….  **NO!** ” it cried. It moved to grasp the monk but she knew she couldn’t let it. The monk was a persona, called by Janna’s cry, trying desperately to escape the beings grasp. “Deidre!” she cried, summoning her persona. It cast Rakukaja on the escaping persona, and then fired a Garu spell into the beings face. “No! Stop! This is mine! I claimed it, fair and square!” it cried. Deidre kept using Garu on the hands, keeping them away. It approached so it could more accurately target them. 

  
  


“Hoichi! Come to me! We must fight together! I made a promise, don’t let me down dammit!” Janna cried out. With that final cry from the depths of Janna’s soul, Hoichi pulled itself from the being and sped to Janna. It slammed into her and she felt it. The piece of her that had been missing this whole time. The piece of her that had been lost since she was so, so small. Too small to understand something essential to her being was missing. She felt tears in her eyes. Tears of sadness, tears of joy, tears of satisfaction. She finally felt whole, something she had longed for, for so, so long. However, she didn’t dwell on it. She wiped the tears that fell away and looked at the scene before her. Keiji stared at her wide-eyed, Haru looked half hopeful and half shocked at her…. And the being looked pissed. It’s clothes went from fine and regal to tattered and ragged. Their vibrant reds dulled and the tassels shriveled to its essential bits. The tophat tilted and drooped, sopping wet. The cape was torn and hanging thinly to the beings thin frame. Worst of all was its physical features. The only visible bit was its face. It looked completely wooden and painted on. The lower jaw moved up and down, clacking the painted teeth together as it spoke. The paint on it ran or faded. It was a sort of grisly sight. It said “You… I took your ‘Persona’ fairly 8 years ago… how  **_dare_ ** you take it back…. I was to feast on your ‘Shadow’ tonight!”. Janna stared at the being as it continued “I gave you life… I made your dreams came true… I even provided for you, and for  **_what_ ** !?”. She took a deep breath. She had a lot to say. 

 

 

“You dense, wooden motherfucker!” she yelled, her voice brimming with primal rage “Gave me a life!? Provided for me!? Bullshit! Why the fuck then does my ma have ta work four goddamn jobs just so we can fucking eat with a roof over our heads! If you knew a damn thing about my ‘dreams’ you’d know full well why I wanna learn music! Get your head outta yer ass and fuck off! We don’t want you, you creepy, useless, outdated toy!!!!”. Janna panted as her rant ended. A silence fell over the hall. The children sat still, unaware of the violence and language around them. The being though convulsed and shook. It was clear she’d gotten to him. She smirked and said “Be a good hand-me-down and go back to the courts toy chest. Your ‘charity’ is denied”. The being convulsed more and stared at her with murderous intent. She hesitated a bit but stood firm as it said in a low growl “You’re going to die. I will feast on your ‘Persona’ and ‘Shadow’, theirs, and I will not make it painless… you ungrateful punk”. Janna felt a bit of fear… but gulped it down. She smirked and said “Just try it! I’m Hanayosei’s most violent punk, Hatsume Kintori, also known as ‘Janna’! Come, Hoichi! Let’s throw them a concert worth remembering!”. 

 

 

Haru and Keiji gasped as Janna summoned a persona. It was the robed monk they saw before… she called it ‘Hoichi’. They knew the meaning behind the name. The ‘earless monk’. A monk who lost his ears because of his friends negligence…. Sadly fitting. The being seemed to realize this too, saying “What an interesting persona… be a shame if your ears-” but was cut off as the persona strummed its string and sent a bolt of lightning into its mouth, making it scream. “Hey, bastard. While your monologuing, you’re completely open!” Janna exclaimed with pride and arrogance. It gave a loud growl. Keiji said “Haru, Janna! Careful, it’s not done!”. Haru backed off quickly, recalling her persona to focus on gaining distance. It noticing this and pulled its flute from the folds of its cape. It was much different. It went from a shiny silver-grey that reflected the moonlight itself to a dull, rusty grey color. No light shone from it, save enough to perceive it. It brought it to its wooden lips and began to play. A haunting, discordant melody played. The facade had fully fallen now. Its true nature revealed, the melody played made it clear. He was the predator and they were prey… and his magic still affected them. 

 

 

Keiji watched as Haru and Janna convulsed before him. They were his targets. He gritted his teeth, turning to haru. He rushed forward, holding his gohei tightly. Pwyll appeared and rushed for Janna as he smacked Haru’s face to inflict pain right as Deidre appeared. Haru yelped and came to her senses as Pwyll made a swing at Janna. It only intended to hit with the flat of its blade, but Hoichi appeared and blocked the strike with its biwa. Pwyll however launched a fireball into the persona, burning its robes and by extension Janna’s. Janna woke from the intense heat and dropped to the ground, rolling around, her senses returned. “Damn… you’ve caught onto my trick… but it’s not my only one! To me children! Defe-” the being began, until suddenly Deidre blasted wind into its wrist, sending the flute to the ground. “No more of that, monster!” She said. She was tired of its mind games. It growled, turning to her fully. “If you thought that I only had those persona, you’re wrong!” it shouted as it began to change before them. Some strange metallic antennae came out the sides of its head and black wires formed hair on top of its head. It swelled to 8 feet in height and it became completely grey. “I’ve still got fight left in me, you miserable humans!” it shouted as lightning coursed from its feet up to its head and then lashed out!

 

 

Haru summoned Deidre and had it use Rakukaja on both Keiji and Pwyll, protecting them from the lightning. It didn’t stop the bolts, but it reduced the potency of them. It stung when they hit her persona. Same for Keiji. However, Janna seemed unaffected. “Ha! You call that an attack! Hoichi! Show him an attack!” Janna yelled. Hoichi strummed its biwa and another bolt of lightning surged from the biwa’s tip right at the being. However it did nothing and it laughed saying “Ha! Fool! I am invincible while donning this persona!” and took a step forward. Keiji said “I challenge that! Pwyll!” and summoned Pwyll, who rushed forward and swung its sword. The being blocked the attack with just its arm, a metallic  _ ting! _ sound ringing out. It swung its arm and Pwyll away, saying “Bring me a challenge if you can puny mortals!” and reared back for an attack. Janna reacted quickly, playing her guitar while Hoichi played its Biwa in perfect sync. As they did, a dull red aura surrounded the arm of the being. Keiji yelled and had Pwyll attack with its sword. Deidre responded by floating behind Pwyll and with outstretched arms launched Garu spell after Garu spell. Pwyll sword glowed red as well. Pwyll sword didn’t just cut the beings arm, it cut deep into its fist, severing several fingers. It cried out, recoiling as it gripped its hand and shrunk into its previous form. “Damn brats! I am Pied Piper! The court bard! I am the life of the party! How dare you upstage me!” it cried, backing off. Haru looked at Keiji, then Janna. They each nodded as Keiji looked at it and walked forward, saying “Pied… your reign of terror is over… the court is now on notice. The town has silent protectors!” and summoned Pwyll. Pied cried out, summoning its flute to it, but Pwyll sliced it in half. Deidre fired a gust of wind right at the beings chest sending it flying. Janna smirked and said “Hoichi! Wrap this up!” and strummed her guitar, Hoichi mirroring her and sending a bolt of lightning at it. It dodged left, and yelled “Got you!” and send a ball of pure black mist flying at Keiji. He screamed as it grew and engulfed him. “Keiji!” She cried. Deidre floated over and stuck its hands into the black mist and a light from within glowed. She wondered what was happening and the information came to her head. She was using the ability called ‘Patra’. 

 

 

However it proved futile. Pied screamed and lobbed another dark ball, this time at Janna. She thankfully dodged it. However, it didn’t let up its assault. It prepared another one, and she realized what that stuff was. It was the things blood. It held its injured hand over the other and black blood oozed onto it. After a few minutes, it became the black mist. It used its power to form the mist into a ball. Janna growled and said “Dammit! It’s firing again!”. Keiji by now had the mist removed from around him and he regained his senses instantly. He had Pwyll return and prepared to dodge. She kept Deidre out and had it prepare to use Patra. The being looked right at her and lobbed it. She reacted by having Deidre place its hands filled with Patra on her as the mist slammed into her. She screamed in pain as the mist began to engulf her. Her senses began to fade as it consumed more and more. However, she kept her wits as Patra removed the mist, faster than with Keiji. Keiji took advantage and had Pwyll advance, going for a slash. Pied avoided it, but Janna countered it finally. She began to play somewhat rapidly, but making a soothing melody. Hoichi did it too but louder. Pied stumbled as it formed the black mist ball and eventually toppled onto the ground. She watched as Keiji had Pwyll slam its sword down onto its neck, empowered by tarukaja. The mist dissipated fully as Pieds head was severed. It wasn’t over though. 

  
  


The head sighed and said “So… Pied… has met his head… ahh…. How sad… I had such tunes to play ...”. Keiji stepped form, Pwyll flanking him. Janna jumped from the table to the ground and moved towards the stage. Haru went around checking children, using Deidre to heal anyone injured by their fight. Keiji asked “Why do you kidnap people’s persona’s? What’s the point?”. Pied laughed and said “Heh…. well I did lose… fine. I’ll explain a bit before I pass… we of the court of the Unseen Fairy God take the persona of the firstborn, leaving their rejected shadow behind…. We then provide for the one we took from… until it's time to harvest their shadow…. Then… we bring them to the forest and eat their persona and shadow…. From which we gain power…. The rest? We simply devour only their shadow… their persona… is untouched”. Keiji had Pwyll put a foot on Pied’s head and asked “How do you choose?”. Pied laughed and said “It’s obvious, Noori boy…. You know the rules…”. Janna approached and said “I see… firstborn eh?... guessing its taken on the camping trip…”. “Bingo” Pied said, then laughed and continued with a cheery tone “Rejoice in your triumph today… for with my death… the court will bring its full might upon you!”. With that cry Janna summoned Hoichi and with a strum sent a bolt of lightning into the head, dispersing its presence. The body had long dissipated into black mist, like the head. Haru looked at them and said “Guys… what about… these children…?”. Keiji turned and sighed, saying “best we just leave… trust me. We shouldn’t get more involved”. Haru was about to protest but Janna cut in, saying “If we showed up with a bunch of kids, we’d be locked up… then we can’t protect anyone…. We have to leave them. Don’t worry…. I’ll arrange for the police to find this place…”. She stayed silent, staring at them as Janna said “Haru… they had a full dinner… they’ll be fine here…”. Haru sighed and said “Fine…. Let me at least protect them during the night with Rakukaja”. Janna nodded, saying “Yeah… perfectly fine. Gotta make sure mishaps are avoided”. With that, Haru got to work. She used Deidre’s protective power again and again on each child. She knew it wouldn’t completely block a predator but she had to do something to protect them if they weren’t going to escort them back. 


	5. Chapter 4: Bonds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Haru, Janna, and Keiji return to their lives after their harrowing experience. However, knowing that they live in some supernatural courts hunting ground leaves them feeling uneasy. They convene and decide that they will be not just the protectors of this town, but will become the hunters. They meet people who will prove useful to them in the future.

**_Chapter 4_ **

_ Bonds of Humanity _

  
  
  


Haru was relieved in the morning. On the news, it spoke of a large number of kids found in the forest. They had been found so quickly because of their actions. Janna had Keiji use Pwyll to make burn marks leading to the kids. Then she looked for a cop car and walked past it with them. She had Hoichi use an ability to make the cop fall asleep. After this, Hoichi slipped a note into the cops breast pocket and with that their plan was done. The cop woke up a few hours later, noticed the note, reported it immediately, checked, and confirmed it. Then the police picked the kids up and returned them. All of them safe… of course there was a problem. Well, it wasn’t a problem but the police were calling it a serial kidnapping thwarted by a worried vigilante… or concerned citizen that was too nice for their own good. Either way, Haru wasn’t concerned. They had defeated a member of the court and saved all the kids… and all without involving themselves or implicating themselves.

 

 

As she walked to school, she heard someone call out… then another. Walking to her side by side were Janna and Keiji. She smiled and said “Good morning”. Janna nodded and replied “Mornin’... you sleep fine Haru-chan?”. Haru nodded as Keiji bowed a bit and said “Good morning Matsuhada…. Wait, you two are on a first-name basis…?” with a tone of surprise. Janna looked at Keiji, saying “Eh, I’m just not a fan of honorifics. Too restrict’in” in a matter-of-fact tone. Keiji stared a Janna a bit before sighing and saying “Well… at least your attitude and mood are healthier than before… guess I know now how to truly save people…”. Janna and Haru stopped, turning to Keiji. Haru stalled a bit before asking “Keiji… that… reminds me… you were fighting that robed woman before… does that mean… you’ve been fighting them alone all this time?”. Keiji looked at her, then Janna who stared at him with suspicion in her eyes. He sighed and said, “It’s a long story…. But yes. Every since about a week ago… they went after two girls. Janna was the one I managed to save…. The other… you know her Janna. She goes to your class”. Janna’s eyes went wide and she said “Wait… Hifume? I thought she seemed different… you mean…?” trailing off. Keiji just nodded, saying “I tried to save her… but I unlocked the power of Persona too late”. Janna nodded, looking around and saying “Let’s get to school… we’ll talk about this later. Just one thing… do we agree that we can’t let these things run amok anymore?”. Haru nodded as did Keiji and with that they began to walk to school. Haru glanced behind them at some bushes, staring. She could’ve sworn she felt something watching them from them. 

 

 

School was slow. Many of the teachers were spending more time lecturing about why students like them shouldn’t gossip about why a bunch of kids were in the woods alone at night than teaching. Haru herself dismissed the lectures… they hadn’t been there. They hadn’t watched as that piper enchanted those kids to come to the forest stage and serve as audience to a hypnotized Janna. However, her and Keiji prevented the worst case scenario from occurring, that being the monster was capable of devouring not just Janna’s shadow, but also the rest. Eventually they were let out for lunch and she went to go to the cafeteria to eat. She wanted to see Janna and ask more about Hoichi. He seemed interesting. However, as she turned to walk down the stairs she saw Keiji waiting. He turned to look at her and said “Ah… Matsuhada-san. I was hoping you’d come this way”. She gave a small bow, saying “Ah… Noori-senpai. To what do I owe the honor?”. Keiji looked around and said, “We’re eating on the roof… I’ve already arranged it. Janna asked me to come tell you”. Haru nodded and said “Then please lead the way Noori-senpai”. Keiji nodded and led her to the roof where Janna waited with a hot soba. “Yoooo! Haru-chan you’ve gotta try this soba! It’s sooo good!” Janna yelled out as she came out from the stairwell leading up to the roof. Keiji sighed but Haru smiled and walked over, saying “Sure. I’d love a taste”. Haru sat down next to Janna on the bench by the fence that prevented them from approaching the edge and accepted Janna’s soba, taste testing it before handing it back. “It is delicious” she said, enjoying the flavor. Janna smiled, then sighed as Keiji spoke up, saying “Janna, Matsuhada-san… I hate to interrupt but we need to talk about this… it’s important”. Janna nodded saying “I know, I know… wanted to clue us in. So do it shrine-boy”. 

 

 

Keiji sighed and said “Yes… it’s important because I know who our enemy is… tell me, Janna, do you know who my family worships?”. Janna shrugged, saying “Nah. Just know everyone’s folks go ‘an pay tribute once a month…. Why? Is it important?”. Keiji nodded, saying “Yes… twice now, the enemy referred to itself as part of the court of the unseen fairy god… coincidentally, my family worships a ‘Menimienai yōsei no kami’. I highly suspect they’re one in the same”. Haru nodded, saying “Yes… invisible fairy god and unseen fairy god are highly equivalent…. So then, we’re fighting a god?”. Keiji nodded and Janna laughed loudly, saying “You know, when I said was the badass punk of Hanayosei, I didn’t think I’d actually fight against the town’s god! Man, that’s so cool!”. Keiji scowled and said harshly “Kintori-san, we don’t have time to joke around! Our foe is a god and we’ve committed to fighting him! We-” but Janna cut him off, harshly saying back “Yeah, and I ain’t afraid ‘a him. So what he’s their boss? We made a commitment, the status of our enemy means nothin’... well to me at least. You care at all, Haru?”. Haru stiffened a bit, staring between Keiji and Janna, before looked at the ground, saying “It’s… a bit more than status Janna… gods have… power…”. Janna’s expression softened a bit as Haru continued, saying, “Though I somewhat agree… this doesn’t change much… we either fight, or we let the town get preyed upon… I… I just can’t look away however!”. Janna nodded, turning to Keiji and said “So there it is. We’re fightin’. You?”. Keiji nodded, saying “I will too…. Somedays I won’t be available because my parents will have me help around the shrine… I’ll text before that. Even so, I will fight… my family views itself as this towns protectors and benefactors… I will do so as well”. Janna stared incredulously through this, before saying “Wow… lotta weight on your shoulders. Must suck… but if you’re doing it on your own, ain’t anyone else’s problem”. With those words, they each felt something inside themselves. Power… Janna’s power produced by the bond of friendship and trust they formed. A social link had been formed… between one another and between each of them and Janna.

 

 

With that, they finished eating before leaving to go back to classes. After school, Janna said she had to go home to help her mom with chores, while Keiji mentioned his parents expected him back at the shrine. As such she was walking home alone. However, she had the strange sensation that she was being followed. Turning, she looked and saw no one but students and none of them paying her more mind that normal. She turned back around and continued, but the feeling persisted. It persisted all the way until she arrived home. Once she got in, She saw Hana sitting at the table drinking coffee and reading the newspaper. He set it down after she closed the door, turning and asking “How was your day today?”. She nodded and said “Fine… what about your day?”. Hana nodded and said “A little… troubled. He’s disappeared… I don’t want to suspect the worst but… Haru. If you see your father, you must run… he’s in a corner, there’s no telling what he’ll do”. She nodded, looking to the ground… then looked at Hana and said “I understand… I did ‘betray’ him after all”. Hana looked a bit shocked before saying “I’m sure he views it that way…. But even if it’s true Matsuhada-chan, you did the right thing…. And I’ll do my duty as your guardian… because it’s the right thing to do, as well”. Haru smiled and said “Thank you… Tsurugi-san”. Hana smiled a bit and said “In the spirit of that… and recent events… I’ve decided to offer you lessons on self-defense when you like, provided of course I’m not busy”. Haru stared a but before smiling and asking “Are you… available now?”. Hana nodded saying “Yep… in that case, let’s move some things. We’ll do it here”. Haru nodded and moved to help Hana move furniture, feeling a bond between her and Hana slowly forming. 

 

 

Keiji was a bit bummed to have to go home immediately after school, but by now expected it. His parents and grandparents quite often had him come home immediately after school to do various chores in lieu of his parents. In some cases, in service of them. He wanted to defy a number of times, and the one time he did, he was severely punished. They gave him the minimum amount of care every week and brought their iron fist down on him, a bit literally though only because he used his first and only swear word to his grandfather. Even then, the retribution wasn’t harsh. A light tap to remind him who was boss. It didn’t even leave a mark, so when he told his teachers, they regarded him as a liar… primarily due to the trust and prestige his grandfather had, as well as his grandfather making everyone else lie. From then on, he never disobeyed his grandparents or parents. Until now, when he went into the forest at night. He justified it as doing it to save Janna… but was he being honest? The question of whether he was doing this to rebel against his parents or because it was the right thing was on his mind often. Even as he swept the grounds of leaves he felt conflicted. However, he ignored his questions. He had to rest for tonight. Igor would no doubt contact him in his dreams.

 

 

Haru had been sleeping… yet soon as sleep took her, she awoke in the familiar blue tent. Awaking, she stood and headed out. Igor likely summoned here. He did and he regarded her with his usual creepy yet warm and welcoming smile. “Welcome, Haru. It seems you have begun to awaken to the power of the wild card”. Haru nodded, saying “Yes… I thought something was off… both with myself and around me…”. Igor nodded, saying “Perceptive. It is true… you’ve welcomed a new persona into your heart” and with a snap of his fingers, it appeared. Haru jumped to her feet, trying to summon Deidre but failing. Before her was one of the green spoon-wielding imps. Igor chuckled and said, “Fear not. He is not your enemy… he is but one mask humanity often wears. That of a basic labourer, Ukobach. Your bravery awakened him to his true self and he joined you in a sense. His power is now yours”. She stared at it, and it waved to her in a friendly manner. “I see” she said “I control this ‘imp’... no… Ukobach now huh?”. Igor nodded, saying “However, we offer another service… we shall go over that another time, but it is vital you utilize it for your future… and look over the contract sometime, and if you agree to our terms, sign it in exchange for our full services… of course you can leave things as is”. Haru looked between Igor and Helena before nodding and standing, saying “I understand… I will do so. Please, expect an answer next time” and then bowed. Igor nodded, saying “Thank you. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I do have another guest to attend to. I am sorry to rush you out. It is the first time I’ve had two guests” and with a wave of his hand, she felt herself tire. Helena spoke as she turned and headed back to the bed, saying “I look forward to serving you, Matsuhada-san”. As soon as she laid in the bed and covered herself, she fell asleep. 

 

 

Keiji found himself in the japanese room. As expected, Helena and Igor awaited him. “Igor-sama, Helena-sama… I see you’ve summoned me” he said, bowing from his sitting position he assumed immediately. Almost on instinct. Igor nodded, saying “Yes. I understand you’ve begun to form some social links”. Keiji nodded, saying “Yes… with Janna and Matsuhada”. Igor nodded, saying “Indeed… the powers of the Fool and the Strength have begun to manifest. They are still weak, but present. As such, we can begin to show you the true power of your card, the Ace” and snapped his fingers. Pwyll appeared, though Keiji was ready this time. Helena stepped to it this time and said “It is my turn to provide the service. As stated in the contract you signed previously, we will assist as we must when possible… which it now is” and pulled out what was commonly referred to as an Ofuda and placed it on Pwyll’s chest. The ofuda was a light yellow color and depicted a female lion tamer stroking the mane of a lion. He assumed such, based on the drawn chair, the woman’s whip, and the fact that the character stroking the mane was clearly a woman. The ofuda slowly began to burn, and as it did Pwyll’s muscles became more toned and a buckler began to slowly form. Once it fully burn, the buckler was fully materialized, though it was only wood framed in iron, with a single dome of iron in the center. “I have changed the arcana of your persona to that of the Strength arcana. With it, you can now borrow power from your bond with Kintori. Since it is weak, all you receive for now is the passive ability of ‘Counter’, which is what it sounds like… though remember, it only applies to physical attacks, though it responds to physical ranged attacks too” Helena explained, before placing her hand on its chest and pulling back, the ofuda reforming. As it did, the buckler dematerialized and Pwyll’s muscles returned to normal. “We will not force such power on you. You must request it to receive it… and for the record, the power you may receive from that of the Fool is Rakukaja… for now. Each will evolve in time, and you will gain more as time goes on” Igor stated. Keiji looked down, then looked at Helena, asking “Could you give it the power of Strength? I’d like the ability it offers”. Helena nodded, performing the same ritual as before. This time, she did not recall the Ofuda. “With that” Igor stated “Our night ends. The next time you come here will be of your own volition. For now, sleep well Ace”. 

 

 

When he awoke he saw his father nearby. He wore his business attire; A black jacket over a light blue button-up shirt with black jeans and pristine black shoes. He wore glasses and his hair was slicked back. He wore a set of glasses, though that was actually for show. “Hey… we need to talk. You got a second?” his father asked him. He nodded and said “Of course… it’s… ah, quite early. I’m available…. Mind if I get dressed?”. His father nodded and said, with his somewhat gruff tone “Meet me in the kitchen” and walked off. Keiji sighed. The sun barely peaked over the distant mountains. Still, he forced himself to stand and get dressed. He wore his school uniform, a simple black outfit with gold buttons. The only oddity was the logo. It depicted two pairs of insect wings connected to one another and the kanji for ‘nature’. He was now assuming that was the enemies doing. He didn’t dwell on it and headed to the kitchen. Around 15 minutes had passed. What he saw shocked him. His father stood there, cooking a dish. “Take a seat… just let me finish breakfast. I am interrupting your normal schedule” his father said. He could only nod and sit. After a few moments, he said “Ah, pardon my lapse in manners. Thank you Ota-san”. His father chuckled and said, “You’re welcome Keiji-chan… here you go” and put some of the food he cooked onto a plate and served it. Rice and fish, as per the custom. Though he detected the hint of a new spice used. His father sat down with his own plate in front of him and said “We can skip the usual prayer. Grandfather isn’t up and he leads those… plus I have a more important issue to discuss”. 

 

 

Keiji watched his father as he ate. His father ate as well, pausing between bites to explain. “Simply put… your grandfather has been acting unusual lately… ever since about a week ago. He’s slowly becoming more and more paranoid. He’s… even openly mused about having me use the resources the company I work for in order to go after people he suspects are working secretly against our family” his father explained “He’s given no order, but I suspect he will. I’ve already discussed with my superiors and they’ve agreed to, within reason, do such. However, doing such will invite enemies. I want you to remain vigilant”. Keiji nodded, saying “Understood father. I will be alert”. His father nodded, saying “In that same vein, I've arranged for a self-defense instructor to make himself available when you need it. It’s all paid for, just call and show up. Understood?”. Keiji nodded, saying “Thank you, father”. His father nodded and said “Then, our business is concluded… also, I’m taking over in breakfast duties. I’ve discussed it with your grandfather”. Keiji replied “Thank you, Ota-san. You are very kind to me”. His father nodded, saying “Men of the Noori family must be strict with their kids… but showing no kindness can only lead to rotten children. I am simply showing that I appreciate your loyalty to this family, your service, and for being so excellent. Now, go. Enjoy your morning before school… just be aware of any favors your grandparents or mother may ask for”. Keiji nodded, finishing his breakfast, taking it to the sink, washing his dish, and then heading to his room to finish preparing before leaving. No one stopped him, so he guessed if they had something it wasn’t important. Besides, he knew what his father conveyed without saying. ‘You have a few hours before school. Make use of it and learn to defend yourself’. Thankfully, while their motives diverged, the result was mutually beneficial. He needed the skills to fight ‘them’ after all. 

  
  


He found the place easily enough. It was a small dojo in the tourism center district of the downtown area. He wasn’t terribly confident however, since it was… gaudy. Large golden kanji over the doorway leading into the dojo announced its name, the ‘Great Dojo of Master Kami-Sama’. The wood itself was a rich hue, clearly imported and of high quality. Most telling though were the giant golden Shisa flanking each side of the entrance, in their traditional pose. Keiji sighed, knowing he was in for a rough time, and knocked as he had been instructed to. Answering the door was a european man with a somewhat large hooked nose with black hair in a topknot. He wore a traditional samurai’s kimono and had a katana at his hip. He almost cringed at the sight but kept himself composed, saying “Excuse me… my father, Getsu Noori, said that you could teach me at any hour I needed it… and I have a few hours before school, so I thought I should get a lesson or two in”. The man looked him up and down, examining him, before saying “Yes… the son of Noori-san. Right, come on in. Trade your shoes at the door for sandals and leave your bag”. The man then turned and went into the dojo. He was already wearing sandals. Keiji walked in and did as instructed. Inside, he saw that the dojo wasn’t as gaudy as the outer appearance. It was almost humble. The man was nowhere to be seen for the moment so he decided to investigate a little bit. There were some pictures of him and his father fishing in the ocean, but in general it was just of the man doing various wilderness things. The man returned, asking “Right. Let’s begin… first, what form of self-defense are you looking to use?”. Keiji thought about it before saying “Kendo sounds like a good style to learn, if you don’t mind…?”. The man looked like he remembered something and said, “Right. Apologies. My name is Abar Kami. Master defense specialist. You may call me Kami-Sama for the duration of your lessons. Otherwise, just Sensei will suffice”. Keiji nodded, saying “Yes, Kami-Sama”. Abar nodded, saying “Then, let me fetch our equipment. I will return momentarily”. 

 

 

Keiji panted. He had been made to change into appropriate attire too, though thankfully had been given privacy. It seemed like not all sense had abandoned Abar. Abar nodded as Keiji sat on the ground and said, “I see… you were quite receptive to the lesson.. That is all for today… though before you go. Have you ever practiced Kendo before?”. Keiji shook his head, saying “No… I never have the time. I’ve got friendships, school, and family to worry about”. Abar nodded, saying “Devotion to family is good, but you must walk your path. Everyone’s destiny will lead them from their family one day…. That said, I asked because you do have potential… I can see great things coming for you, should you proceed”. Keiji looked at him, standing finally and asking “What do you mean?”. Abar sternly said “Noori. Your moves are that of a beginner. Yet, the adaptiveness you showed…. You can apply that to other things. I can hone it for you… and if you do, I’m sure your life can only be good and worthwhile. Please, if you ever want more lessons, return. I will be happy to teach you, Noori-chan”. Keiji stared at Abar, feeling a small bond form, and nodded, saying “Understood, Kami-Sama”. Abar nodded approvingly, then went to what Keiji guessed was the living quarters… or equipment room. It mattered little. He went and changed in the locker room, returned the equipment, collected his things, and left for school.    
  
  


 

Haru did better in class that day. She wasn’t tired from the night they fought the piper and while she wouldn’t outwardly admit it, she had good grades when she attended high school in Tokyo. Her grades were really almost perfect, getting 90s across the board. Except in social studies, which was usually a 78. Her parents didn’t care of course, simply acknowledging she wasn’t a waste of space. She got a chance to show this when her psychology teacher asked “Matsuhada! What is the name of the repressed self talked about in Jungian Psychology?”. Haru looked at the textbook for a moment before answering “The shadow”. The teacher nodded, saying “Good job! See, even someone like Matsuhada understands the importance of psychology! It should be recognized as a legitimate field of science! Now, let’s continue…” and the teacher began a lecture on jungian psychology. She didn’t listen, as she had already learned about it in Tokyo. Not long after the bell for lunch rang. Their teacher, a Jurai Hora, looked at the clock and then them, saying “Well then, class is dismissed. Remember, fill out the online questionnaire when you get home… and no cheating! I’ll find out if you used google!” and turned, walking out of the room. Haru sighed and stood, reaching down and picking up the bento Hana had made for her that morning. She then moved to hurry to the roof. She wanted to talk to Janna and Keiji about an idea she had. 

 

 

Keiji sat eating some bread from the cafeteria that he purchased while Janna ate instant soba again. She stared at them before saying “Excuse me… Noori-senpai… I have a question… regarding the forest”. Keiji stopped eating, looking at her and saying “Of course Matsuhada-san. What’s your question?”. Haru asked “I’ve just been thinking about the situation… and… I’m wondering why we’re on the defensive”. Keiji and Janna stopped, both turning to her. Keiji spoke first, saying “W-well…. They are invading and since we know nothing, we can’t… make hasty decisions…”. Haru nodded, but said “True… but with the strength the enemy has shown, I think it’s a bad idea to let them make the first move……… I…” and hesitated. “Go on” Janna said, encouragingly “What do ya wanna do Haru?”. Haru was only silent for a few more moments before she said “I think we should make the first move… and seek another member of their ‘court’ and take them out… in the forest… as a message”. Keiji looked away, clearly thinking. Janna laughed loudly, asking “You actually wanna go fight them on their turf? Bold plan, Haru! I didn’t know ya had it in ya!”. Keiji, still silent, listened as Haru said “Well, if they come… there’s no way we can stop them if they aren’t in our neighborhood… and after what happened… there’s no guarantee that they’ll go back into the forest down the path by Noori-senpai’s place”. Janna nodded, saying “Good point, good point… we just lucked out with piper ‘cause he was a dumb toy filled with empty pride… nothing says the others are gonna be that way”. Keiji spoke up finally, saying “No. It’s tradition. They will… but that’s not the point. Haru makes a good point. We’ll never truly win if we just play defensive… we need to get an advantage……. And the forest will have it. Perhaps instead of an offensive, we scope out the forest and use the information there for ambushes when they go hunting?”. Haru nodded, saying “Yes… that’s sensible”. Keiji, nodding, said “Then… let’s do it today. After school. I’m available… what about you two?”. Janna waved her hand dismissively, saying “Pssh. Yeah. Got all the time in the world. Haru? You game?”. Haru nodded, saying “Yes…. I can go out”. Keiji responded, saying “Then it’s settled. We’ve scout out some of the forest today…. Hopefully find clues, and then plan an ambush”. With a nod, all three finished their lunches and returned to their classes. All unaware of the small orange creature watching them from the bushes in the schoolyard below. 

 

 

Haru’s classes were non-issues and peaceful. Once it was over she left the school. She headed for a specific place. Janna’s secret concert hall. It was a perfect hideout that she doubted anyone knew even existed besides shady types… and based on the fact that Janna was there often told her that those types never bothered going there. As she thought, waiting for her were Keiji and Janna. There were an assortment of items on towels on the stage. “What’s all this?” she asked, approaching the stage. Janna looked at her and then stood, saying “Ah, Haru! Just in time. Come on up. We got a special delivery, favor of Keiji” and offered Haru a hand. She took it, climbing onto the stage. Keiji spoke “Hello, Matsuhada-san. I’m glad you made it… I made a call after we spoke and had a friend procure some weapons for us… I figured if we’re really going into the forest, we should be armed”. Haru nodded, saying “Makes sense…”. Janna walked over to a knife, leaning down and picking it up, saying “Knives have always been my thing. I prolly could use something like an axe or club, but that’s got no style… a good knife though looks cool in the right hands”. Keiji stared at Janna for several minutes before asking “Do… do you even know knifeplay of that level ...?”. Janna looked at him, saying “Nope. I’m a quick learner though” and stood, pocketing her newly acquired switchblade. Keiji sighed deeply, before bending down and picking up a wooden katana, saying “I’m particular to swords… it’s wooden but it’s all my friend could get on short notice… all that’s left is a bow and arrow or a brass knuckles”. Haru moved to the bow, bending down and picking it up, testing it. “I used to be in the archery club, back in Tokyo” she stated, letting the string go before examining it to make sure it was fine, then picking up the quiver “It’ll do”. “Then… we’ve got our weapons” Janna said “All we’ve gotta do is march on the forest without gettin’ noticed… and that’s where I come in”. Janna then moved and pulled a duffel bag out of a hidden compartment on the stage, saying “Store your stuff in here… it should all fit”. Keiji and Haru looked at each other, nodded, and did so. “Well then… meet you at the forest. I’ll go first so it ain’t suspicious” and left. Haru and Keiji waited for a while before leaving. 

 

 

As they walked, Haru got the sense of being followed and watched again. She stopped and turned. The only people on the street look completely absorbed by what they were doing. She didn’t spot the telltale signs of someone interested in her among the people in the crowd. The only thing of interest was a fox with a scarf on its neck. She sighed and turned, running to catch up to Keiji. “Everything okay?” Keiji asked. “Yes, Noori-senpai… thank you for asking. Just keep feeling like we’re being followed… but no one is” she replied, walking forward. Keiji hesitated but followed. Half an hour later they were at the forest. Inside by a dozen feet was Janna, waiting under a tree. Janna waved them over and they walked there. “Hey. You made it… great. You ready?” Janna asked. Haru nodded and said “Yes... give me a second” and pulled her phone out. She navigated to an app she had that mapped out places as she navigated physically through them. She marked the twelve feet from where she stood to the entrance as forest and set it to map as forest from then on. She then put her phone away and retrieved her bow and arrow, saying “I have an app that maps places out as I travel. I was using it to map out Hanayosei….. Now though it will map out this forest”. Janna nodded, saying “Wow Haru… that’s pretty clever. What’d I’d expect from our leader”. Haru stopped moving, staring at Janna. “Huh?” she asked, completely stunned. “Yes… leader? Why do we need one?” Keiji asked. “Ya know. Every club has it. President, boss, godfather…. Every org’s got it…. So we do too. So, whaddya say Haru?” Janna explained. Haru hesitated but sighed, asking “I’m leader whether I like or not… huh?”. Janna smiled big, nodding “Yep. Now then…. Let’s go!”. Haru sighed and with that moved to go deeper into the forest. 

 

 

They were going on foot so she wasn’t expecting much. Yet, as the boundary between the forest and outside world became farther and farther… the more alien the forest felt. Eventually, the forest felt entirely different. From serene beauty to whimsical scenery is the most apt description she could give. Keiji kept an eye out While Janna used her phone to keep track of time. The good news was they got signal in the forest. Bad news was that it was…. Tough. Hiking normally was taxing on a person, even through their local woods. However, this forest was different. Everything about it drained their stamina. Even the very air. However, they pressed on. Thanks to that, they discovered it. Another path through the forest that tangentially connected to the main one. It looked more like an animal track, but close examination revealed tracks of too many different kinds of… ‘things’. Simply put, only the court could’ve made them. However, they did not stop there. They pressed further… that was when they came upon it. A… odd place. It was a clearing, about 100 yards in any given direction. From it there was cubicle after cubicle made from hollowed stumps. All neatly arranged and fashioned. In each cubicle sat some strange creature. If Haru’s guess was right, enslaved persona. In the direct center were a series of tree’s extending to the sky. They had to be at least a thousand feet tall. However, roots ran from each cubicle to the tree’s. Almost as if the tree’s were…. Some kind of server. They didn’t investigate, at least immediately, because the area had guests beyond the persona…. There were two very large beings there too, walking by them as they hid in the bushes. One of them they recognized. Morgana, back into her robed human form. 

  
  


“So… Pied Piper really died huh…? A shame. I’ll miss his songs” the second being said. He was a very tall humanoid figure, at least 15 feet tall. He had very thing limbs, no larger than 3 inches in diameter, and his actual body was maybe 5 inches total. Hair sprouted from his head, obscuring most of his body, like a fine hooded robe. He had a very elderly-sounding tone. “Not really… in a year, he will return after we offer shadows to his grace…. Maybe even earlier. You know how it is” Morgana stated factually “That’s not why I’m here”. The second being sighed and asked “Must you be so straightforward…? We can’t even enjoy a simple conversation?”. Morgana shook her head, saying “Normally, my friend, I would… but the situations dire. I was repelled, and now Pied Piper is dead. You  **must** give me a telling. I need to see if I’m next”. The taller being crossed his arms, saying “Come now Morgana… you know the rules of my power…. And I’m missing parts of it”. “Then get them… I won’t be done in by some lowly humans” Morgana stated. Sighing, the second being said “Fine… come. Just… be careful. Don’t disturb my shadows at work” and proceeded to shepard Morgana through the cubicles and down another path. Haru checked her phone… it mapped this place out, though it just showed and empty clearing. She nodded and said in a low whisper “I got it… we should probably go”. Janna nodded, saying “Yeah. That many persona would get in our way… we can leave it once we figure out his gimmick” and then she moved away. Haru did too as Keiji asked, moving away himself “Gimmick…?”. Janna nodded, saying “Yeah… that thing they called Pied Piper? Clearly used magic music… the woman you mentioned is clearly a mage… so this third one clearly has some kinda dumb gimmick he’s gonna use to lure people to the forest”. Keiji sighed and said “Then… we research. These things are clearly based on tales… so there has to be something on him”. Haru nodded, saying “Yes… I’m sure we’ll find something”. That’s when it stopped them. A single fox… no. A fox wearing a scarf. Her eyes widened and she said “Guys…. We have a problem”. 

 

 

“Why is a fox a problem…? We got persona, it’s no issue” Janna said, summoning Hoichi. The fox laughed and said, “You think you can catch me? Good luck!”. They all stopped and stared, Hoichi vanishing. After five solid minutes, the fox spoke, saying “I thought you guys were persona users… this is great”. “Wh… wh… what ...?” Keiji asked, incredulous. “Oh please, you’ve seen weirder than a talking fox… Keiji Noori right? Let’s just say, you’re going to see far weirder the deeper you go” the fox started walking towards them and stopping before them “I’m here ‘cause I wanna talk”. “Wh… what about…?” Haru asked slowly. “You guys are planning to fight them… right? I want in”. “Wait, wait, wait! Why the hell should we let you in on this?” Janna demanded, glaring down at the fox. “Cause I’m a victim too. I lost my memory, and I suspect form, to those things. My last memories are being held by some massive hand while poison it leaked from the hands melted me alive… then coming to a while later…. And being in this form” the fox explained “Meanwhile, while I was melting I stared at a surprised anthropomorphic fox…. And it was speaking to some robed lady when I came to. I darted into the forest and have been stalking many things since, seeking revenge! Please, help me!”. 

 

 

Janna and Keiji looked at each other, then Janna and Keiji looked at Haru whom returned their gaze. Haru sighed and said “I…. that sounds terrible… mr.fox… but…” though the fox cut off, saying “I understand it’s strange… and that the world doesn’t work on altruism. I plan to help. I can navigate for you”. “We already got that covered. Haru has an app-” Janna began but the fox cut her off too, saying “Technology right? Doesn’t work here. Once you leave, all the memory of your time here will be wiped….. I know because I’ve seen tourist hikers try the same thing”. Haru thought about it, then asked “Assuming you’re being honest… why would we need a navigator…?”. The fox responded immediately, saying “Because once they consider you an enemy, the forest changes itself every time you leave and re-enter…. I can only navigate so well because of my new bodies sense of smell”. Keiji sighed and said, “We are fighting a god…. None of this is outside the realm of possibility… in which case, fox, would you be willing to agree to a meeting tomorrow? We don’t have school and thus can meet in the afternoon easily…. And we’d have confirmed your words”. The fox nodded, saying “Thank you. I can accept such terms. When our partnership is formed, I won’t fail you”. With that, the fox looked around, saying “Sadly we must part…. Shadows are coming. Prepare yourselves” and dashed into the bushes. Haru sighed and readied her bow. 

 

 

Through the bushes a pack of fairies appeared. Pixies, if she remembered mythology correctly. They were in almost every single one. Even japan had its own variation. They were only a foot tall, a wingspan of  2 feet, and wore blue clothes, with wings like that of a dragonfly. “Ahhh! Master Bannik was right! There totally are intruders in the King’s forest!” one said. “Well, lucky for you we’re leaving… won’t you leave us be?” Keiji asked. Another pixie laughed and said “Sorry, but nooooo! Master Bannik said that we could play with whatever we found! So! Let’s play, let’s play!”. Haru looked at Janna before quietly asking “What are we playing?”. “A simple game! We attack you and you scream in pain and then we eat your persona!” another said, electricity crackling off of its small body. Haru summoned Deidre and had it use Rakukaja on her, surrounding her in a barrier as a bolt of lightning jumped from the fairy to her. She yelped in pain, feeling pinpricks of pain from the bolt touching her. “Haru!” Janna yelled, growled as she turned to the pixie horde, and summoned Hoichi. Hoichi began to play its biwa and sent a bolt of lightning to one of the pixies. However, the pixie simply laughed, saying “Ohhhh! Give me more!”. Janna’s face screwed up and she pulled out her switchblade, saying “Guys! They’re strong against electric!”. Keiji rushed forward, summoning Pwyll, and swung his sword while Pwyll swung it’s blade, buckler up to deflect some attacks. “Wow! Dude, did your persona change!?” Janna said aloud. 

 

 

Haru focused, summoning Ukobach this time and mentally inquired about its abilities. She saw them listed in the air in front of her. Agi, Fire Break, and Pulinpa… the first ability she knew was the fireball attack Pwyll used. The second said it made enemies resistant or immune to fire no longer such and the third ability seemed to confuse enemies. She decided to use Pulinpa, since their situation was that they were outnumbered. Ukobachs spoon filled with oil and he flung it right at the horde of pixies, which scattered anyway, all firing their lightning bolts as they did. However, the oil did splash onto one pixie whom looked very, very confused. Enough that it turned to Keiji, whom had fallen over, convulsing when Pwyll was struck by a stray bolt, and channeling healing power into him. Keiji stood, looking at Haru and Janna, questioning “Multiple… persona…? Is that… the wild card… I heard about…?”. “Dude! Is… is that one of those imps…? Wait, are you controlling it!? What the hell is going on!?” Janna yelled, watching the pixies and now the imp. “I… I’m controlling it! Don’t worry for now! I’ll explain later, I promise!” Haru said, and had Ukobach throw more oil. The Pixies scatters, the oil missing this time. Unfortunately, the confused pixies dashed in a random directly, crashing into another. “Pwyll!” Keiji cried, sending a fireball there. The pixies cried as they burned, fleeing into the forest. Janna got an idea and had Hoichi start to play his biwa, one of the remaining pixies falling asleep. Haru aimed and sent an arrow into it, making it dissipate into shadows. The remaining pixies but on fled after that. It looked around, confused, as their persona surrounded it. “End of the line, fairy…. Any last requests?” Janna said with a tough tone. “P-please! Spare meeee!” it cried “I was kidding when I said I’d eat your persona!”. Haru stepped forward, Ukobach vanishing and Deidre appearing. It stroked the scared Pixie’s cheek, healing it. “Please… won’t you help us? What these things are doing… it’s wrong… can’t you agree? Don’t pixie’s just have harmless fun with travelers?” Haru asked, remembering the legends around english pixies. The pixie looked at her confused for several moments, then had a look of clarity. “Yes… yes! I remember now… I’m not Pixie, servant of Bannik! I’m Pixie, trickster fairy of the sea of human souls! Thank you for helping me remember… in return, let me strengthen your heart!” it said, turning into a ball of light and flying into Haru’s locket. 

 

 

“Haru! What the hell is going on!?” Janna demanded, looking a bit scared. Keiji spoke, looking at Janna “Part of her power… a man that’s visited my dreams mentioned it…. The ‘wild card’.... I don’t know the details beyond they wield multiple persona”. Janna looked at Keiji, then Haru as Haru said “Keiji is mostly right… there’s a bit more apparently though… according to Igor”. Janna stared at Haru for a minute, then sighed and said “Alright then… I trust you, Haru. Sorry about that, I was just shocked”. Keiji nodded, saying “It’s understandable… apparently, our powers are rare, even among the rare ability to use Persona… I’m what’s called an ‘Ace’ by the way. Nothing too special, I just change arcana’s to gain powers”. Janna nodded, saying “I see…. We are lucky then. Two special powers among special powers to fight this… lemme guess, my power is just my persona?”. Haru shook her head, saying “According to Igor, even regular persona change over time… they are reflections of the mask we wear. So as time goes on, it stands to reason it’d change with you”. Janna smiled happily, saying “Really…. Huh… no one lives in static huh…? Thanks Haru-kun… I feel better”. Haru smiled, her face reddening a small bit… as Keiji asked “Janna… did you just use an honorific?”. Janna’s face reddened as she said “Okay. Nope. I’m done. Let’s get outta here” and continued through the forest. Keiji and her gave a small chuckle and followed, the danger gone… and a new Persona inside her. Pixie, restored from the shadow that the court member apparently named Bannik had doomed her to. 

 

 

Meanwhile, deep in the woods, in what appeared to be a magical laboratory made from the forest itself, stood the hairy robe figure and Morgana. In the center a tub sat, filled with steaming hot water. “Last time… are you certain?” the hairy figure asked. “Yes… you’re the court seer. Do your job, Bannik”. Bannik sighed, saying “Then prepare. Back to the tub, question ready. I’m beginning”. Morgana nodded and did so, sitting on a small stool Bannik prepared. Bannik then teleported suddenly, appearing in the circular wooden tub and sighed in deep satisfaction “You’re question now…”. “Those two Persona-users I encountered and failed to defeat… will they be the end of me?” Morgana asked. She couldn’t see what Bannik was doing but felt it. She screamed as she felt claws rend her back. She fell forward, panting deeply. Bannik removed himself from the tub and said “That is your future…. I’m sorry Morgana. I shall-” but Morgana spoke, interrupting him “No… don’t you dare Bannik… Don’t dishonor me. I will die, but I’m taking those wretched mortals with me, and I can’t if ‘he’ interrupts”. Bannik stared at Morgana, sighing and saying “Fine… but if he asks I’m not lying. I am his loyal seer and court noble”. Morgana spat on the ground, saying “I know…” and stormed off. Bannik sighed and said “Good riddance… you never had the strength of will to overthrow him… King Erlkonig…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So to explain what's going on with Keiji now that all the cards are on the table. He's something that I've created specifically for this fanfiction. an 'Ace'. Essentially, he can change the arcana of Pwyll so long as he has the social link to do so. The deeper that bond is, the more power it will give Pwyll. To put it into game terms, he has a rank 1 social link with Janna and so has Counter while Pwyll is of the Strength arcana... when he switches to the Fool, which is rank 1, he gains Rakukaja. 
> 
> Now onto the shadows. I originally was going to go the persona 3/4 route but after replaying persona 5 I got an idea and am going with it. Basically, it's similar to what happened to Persona when they were in palaces... except there's a small difference. Instead of becoming shadows enslaved to the will of the palace ruler, these shadows have simply become court members... allying themselves with whomever serves their interests best. There is another side-effect; their predatory nature is emphasized. 
> 
> That's all for now. I'm working on the Noir chapter next, then the Frontiers chapter before I return to this. I hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	6. Chapter 5: Mysteries

**_Chapter 5_ **

_ Mysteries Upon You _

  
  


Haru went home after they exited the forest. The forest was more tiring than she expected and she hadn’t been truly prepared. Even so, she was glad they did it. They acquired a guide and discovered the supernatural qualities of the forest, specifically that it rendered electronic mapping useless. However it did require one thing of them; They had to include it in their group and help it receive revenge. Thankfully it was a reasonable request, one that they could agree to easily. Another blessing had been that it was dusk when she arrived home and so Hana asked nothing more than “How was your day?” when she came in. He was cooking dinner when he asked and she answered “Good. Went to an arcade with some friends I made… you know Keiji Noori?”. Hana nodded, saying “Not him specifically, but I know of his family… one of the few families completely detached from politics but also extremely influential. Basically if you don’t have their support, no politician succeeds in this town”. She nodded and put her bag in a small drawer next to the doorway, taking out what she needed to finish the days homework. As much as she wanted to devote her full attention to her efforts to protect Hanayosei, she had a feeling Hana would not be keen on letting her, meaning she had to keep up the appearance of a diligent student. She sat down and began working as Hana continued cooking. 

 

 

She set her homework aside once Hana announced “Alright dinner’s ready!” and walked in with two plates. Tonight seemed to be curry. She looked at Hana as she picked up her spoon to eat, saying “Thank you, Tsurugi-san. This looks good” and began to eat. Hana smiled a bit and said “Of course… I’m responsible for you. Was the moment I made that deal with you and I ain’t the kind of man to go back on my word”. They ate somewhat in silence. Haru was still a shy girl, even around Hana, who she had been acquainted with for over a year. However, recent events made her come out of her shell a bit more. As their meal neared its end, she asked “Why… did you decide to learn to cook?”. Hana looked at her, taking a sip of coffee he had served himself halfway into the meal, saying “Simple… I wanted to land a girlfriend”. She stared at him with a somewhat incredulous look and was about to question him when he smiled and said “I’m kidding… I’ve honestly only known how to cook for a few years now. Primarily because I got tired of take-out and through a chance meeting discovered what true flavor was. Some personal research and lots of practice got me to a sustainable level”. She nodded and questioned further “I see… and this chance meeting? What was it?”. 

 

 

Hana sighed deeply, smiled a bit, and leaned back, taking a full drink of coffee. He stared at the wall, like he usually did when he was about to tell a story, and said “Well…. Basically I was walking home from my shift on a day that I didn’t take lunch to work and ran into a co-worker who had a knack for cooking. Heard my stomach rumble and offered me a meal… with the simple stipulation I make coffee to go with it. I agreed, we went to her place, and the rest is history”. Haru nodded, saying “I see… very coincidental”. Hana laughed a bit, saying “It was… not that I minded. It motivated me to start cooking, especially since that encounter shattered my perception that ‘I don’t have time to cook my own food’. She worked harder than I did and yet it turned out everything she ate was home-made.”. Haru smiled and said “I see…. Such a simple encounter changed your worldview so profoundly?”. Hana nodded, saying “Yep. I know it’s a bit boring but it’s the truth. Sorry there isn’t a juicier story there for you”. Haru shook her head, saying “No, thank you Tsurugi-san for sharing something like that…. I’m honored you trust me so much”. Hana smiled and said “I’ve got plenty of other stories with life advice. If you’re ever curious go ahead and ask. I don’t mind sharing… now. Let’s finish so you can get back to work. I’d be a bad guardian if I distracted you from your studies for much longer” and began to finish his meal. She did too, feeling a bond forming between them. Smiling, she set her dish aside and began to work on her schoolwork again, while Hana picked her dish up and set it in the sink, washing the dishes too. He went to bed before her, reminding her to be in bed at a decent hour. She herself finished her schoolwork an hour after and went to bed, the days events exhausting her. 

 

 

When she woke up she was back in the Velvet Room. She sighed a bit in annoyance but said nothing, knowing it was likely important. She got out of her bed and walked out, to a waiting Igor and Helena. “Ah. Welcome back, Matsuhada-chan. I trust you are sleeping well?” Igor said, greeting her before gesturing to a chair across from him on the other side of the fire “Please, sit. We have matters to discuss”. She nodded and sat down, saying “I understand… I am sleeping well I think”. Igor smiled a tad more than normal and said “That is good… then the matter I have to discuss will go smoothly. It is in regards to the aid we of the Velvet Room can offer to you”. Haru nodded and said “I would be… most grateful for any aid… I assume you already know of my fight against the court?”. Igor nodded, saying “I am indeed aware… and it means my aid will certainly be useful to you. You are aware you can hold multiple Persona in you, correct?”. She nodded and Igor continued, saying “That, as previously discussed, is due to your ability of the ‘Wild Card’. However there is a further power available to you through our aid; That of Persona Fusion”. Her expression went from a slightly tired but ultimately neutral expression to one of surprise. “Persona… Fusion?” she questioned. Igor continued, saying “Yes… we can fuse Persona you have within you to give birth to a new one. To give birth to a new ‘You’. Would you like a demonstration?”. She nodded and gasped as suddenly her Persona appeared around her. Before her floated Deidre, to her left Ukobach, and to her right Pixie. “Normally we would have you select two… however, the only acceptable combination is Deidre and Ukobach…. The others will result in a Persona too strong for your psyche” Igor stated before waving his hand. Deidre turned to Haru, and a voice entered her head. It said “Do not fear child. I am not leaving your side. I will soon be reborn… and even beyond I will always lay within the sea of your soul. Call on me whenever you need it”. Haru nodded as it and Ukobach turned into balls of light and floated to the fire.

 

 

The balls of light went into the fire and settled amongst the wood acting as fuel for it. They in turn caught fire and began to produce a blue smoke. As it rose the smoke began to take shape, more and more. Eventually, she saw it. A new Persona.  It was a slightly obese, androgynous yet feminine being with a dark green patch of hair on its head. It had bright green eyes and wore a light pink, loose-fitting kimono. It held a filled plate of sake in one hand. It spoke to her, saying “I am Matsuo-Sama, patron goddess of sake. I come from the sea of thine soul… come. Let us indulge on life’s pleasures” before turning into a ball of light and floating into her. She felt the effects immediately, feeling her restraint soften…. But not disappear. “Do… all Persona… have this effect on my psyche…?” she asked. Igor nodded, saying “They are ‘you’ after all… and you are they. However, there will always be a core to your being… now. Please, accept a final gift from us” and waved his hand again. Bits of the fire flew to a point in front of her, forming the vague shape of a key before materializing into a golden-blue key with the symbol of a mask on one end. “Please, take it. It is a symbol of our contract… it is a simple one. I believe you signed it recently. Further, it will let you come to us for aid through doorways here that exist in your world. The next time we meet, it will be of your volition” Igor explained. She nodded and reached up, grabbing the key. Igor sighed happily and said “With that, our matters are done… but is there anything else you need?”. She stared at the fire before asking something that had been bothering her “The sea of my soul…. Is it… small?”. Igor shook his head, saying “No”. She nodded, standing and said “Then…. Have a nice day, sir” and gave a bow before turning to the tent and heading there. She heard Igor’s final words before she got into bed and let sleep take her “What a well-mannered guest… I look forward to her path”. 

 

 

Keiji himself texted his friends to see if any could hang out. Thankfully, the one he could rely on always was willing to do so. He headed to the diner and walked in, looking around. Seeing an open booth and no Sai, he walked to it. The waitress walked over, saying “Hello… anything I can get you today?”. He nodded, saying “A cola please”. The waitress nodded and walked over to do just that just as he saw Sai walk in. Sai walked over, saying as he sat “Hey Keiji… man you look rough. You get into a fight?”. He shook his head, saying “Nothing… serious. Just a rough day. Wanted someone to hang out with so I could relax…. Thanks by the way”. Sai laughed, saying “Don’t mention it. Ever since you took care of that crappy adult that kept scamm’in me, I’ve owed you one”. Keiji smiled a bit nervously, saying “All I did was throw my family name out….. And said you were my friend without your input. Nothing big”. Sai laughed and said “Maybe but it meant a lot… no one was willing to stand up to him… not even ma. Just speaks to your character that you ain’t hold’in it over my head”. Keiji smiled genuinely now and said “Thanks Sai… I can always trust you to be straight with me”. Sai laughed, ordering a cola himself as the Waitress brought his and said “You can count on me for that… I don’t waste time on things like lying”. Keiji sighed as he felt his bond with Sai grow… in a more tangible way than previously. He could literally feel the seed of a social link plant and bloom within him. He had gain 3 ranks in the Lovers Arcana. Not that he minded… he genuinely liked Sai and did care about him. Him and Sai talked some more, this time about more recent things before he decided to head home for the night. 

 

 

When Keiji got home he could hear his family eating. He had grabbed something on his way out and ate on the way back home and so wasn’t hungry. So he opted to head to his room to work on schoolwork. His family left him alone shockingly. It seems his father meant it when he said he’d work on having the rest of the family let up on him. It was sometime before midnight that he yawned, stretching and laying back. He sat at both a modern and traditional knee-cap height table that one would sit fully down at rather than in a seat or on a couch. He stared at the ceiling, letting random thoughts enter his head. Pwyll, Sai, Keisuke, Yuuta, the fox, Haru, Janna… the court. The god he was supposed to worship. “Man… what a life… who’d have thought… I’d get this burden…” he mumbled to himself and let himself drift off to sleep. He awoke moments later to the familiar blues of the Velvet Room. He sat up straight, spying Igor and Helene whom looked shocked. “A… Apologies for the hair. I had a… rough night” he said, using his hands to comb it back. He had noticed in Igor’s bulging eyes what his hair looked like. It was wild, slightly puffed out and curly. He worked hard every morning to brush it straight. “It is fine… I simply have not seen you like that… your night went well, I assume?” Igor stated. Keiji nodded as Igor continued, saying “I have brought you here for two things… first, to inform you that they now intend to target one Hana Tsurugi. Second is to deliver this to you” and with that waved his hand. With a flash of light a golden-blue key appeared, floating in the air before Keiji. On one end sat the symbol of the Velvet Room, a half-white, half-black mask, the black half crying blue tears. He reached out and took it, asking “What is it?”. Igor smiled, saying “It is the key to the Velvet Room… the next time you enter, it will be of your own volition. We will no longer be pulling you here in your dreams”. Keiji nodded, saying “Thank you, Igor-sama. Helena-sama. I appreciate the aid you are offering… I hope you will continue”. He proceeded to give a traditional bow that his parents taught for formal guests of the Noori… or when they were guests. Legs under his calves, hands on his knees, body bent 45 degrees to give respect. Igor was silent for a moment, before saying” You are welcome, young man. I will certainly continue to”. Helena stared at Keiji, frowning a bit and asked “Is that… really comfortable…?”. Keiji looked up at her, puzzled. Like he had never expected that question. Igor simply sighed and said “Helena. Manners”. Helena straightened, her expression tightening and said “Right… Apologies, Master Keiji… that was rude of me. You’re welcome and I will aid you as well”. Igor spoke again, saying “With that our time is up… I pray you sleep well. Please… weather the coming storm”. Keiji nodded slowly, saying “I will”. 

 

 

The next morning Haru decided to try something. She tried to summon Matsuo, the Persona she fused the night prior and it appeared. Unlike before, it did not speak and merely stood, stoic and staring forward. Instantly, information filled her head. Information on Matsuo. All it really told her was the ‘Arcana’ it was associated with and its abilities. It had quite a few abilities at its disposal that Deidre didn’t have. However it still had Deidre’s healing power. Further, it had some alternative attack options. It had Agi, the fireball ability she had seen Pwyll use, and then Psi. It was a psychic attack of some kind. However, more interesting were the other two abilities it had. Ice Wall and Dormina. According to the information, Dormina was an ability that put enemies to sleep while Ice Wall created an Anti-Ice barrier. She smiled a bit. She had the weapon she needed to defend against that one female court member. She stood out of bed and stopped, feeling around her back. She reached into the back pocket of her pajamas and pulled out… a key. She gripped the key a bit before putting it on the table and getting dressed for the day. They had a meeting with a fox to attend and it wouldn’t do to be late. 

 

 

She and Keiji arrived roughly at the same time. She wore a white top with a long pink skirt. She carried her black leather purse on her. This time, her pendant was much more visible this time though. Keiji was wearing more casual clothing as well. A simple white button up that was a little loose and black denim jeans. Janna wore her normal clothing as she approached a moment later. They were at Janna’s hideout. Being 11 in the morning, there was plenty of lightning. Further, the area didn’t echo enough to alert people to their conversation and it took a bit of walking to find, with only one way in meaning only those in the know would come here… or the nosy. Either they all could handle. It wasn’t long before the fox followed. “There you are…” Keiji muttered, sighing “I was… slightly hoping you were some weird hallucination”. “Sorry Noori-chan. I’m as real as you.” the fox said, looking at each and sighing “Though admittedly I’m disappointed too. I had hoped it really wasn’t just you three and you had a reserve member…. Oh well”. Janna growled a bit, saying “Hey, you want out that’s fine. We-” but stopped as Haru rose a had, saying “Sir. I am sorry we disappoint you… but we’re all we have and we’re determined… are you?”. The fox stared at her, almost looking grumpy, or angry… but then gave a chuckle and said “You got guts kiddo. Yeah. I’ve got determination too. My name’s Hayato… I don’t remember my last name, sorry… though I know I had one”. Keiji flinched, mumbling “Hayato…” before sighing and saying “Understood. Then, I hope we can work together”. Hayato nodded, saying “Then let’s get down to business… information. If you’re going to fight, you need to be in the know… and I have the know”. Janna sighed and said “Alright…. So what’s the score? What are we up against?”. 

  
  


Haru checked her phone, checking it and her memory and relayed that the fox had been straight with them… the map app simply noted they entered and exited. Her own memory was warped, remembering actions and things done but not the routes taken. She doubted muscle memory would provide anything further. After that she opened a voice to text app with auto-saving activated as Hayato spoke. “Alright… first things first. I dunno the exact structure but I know three things about it. First, there’s a lower and higher court. Second, the lower court operates closer to the town and the higher court operates deeper inside. Finally, that there is a figure that stands atop it. An ‘Unseen Fairy God’... that’s it about the court’s structure” Hayato relayed. “I see… sort of similar to many companies and even ancient courts… the leaders inner circle and then important but not close subordinates…” Keiji said, thinking. “It means whoever leads it definitely has biases…” Haru mused. Janna laughed and said “Yeah…. And we can exploit that. Have’in a bias and have’in a separation in the court means he’s arrogant enough to put somethin’ like that wood freak on the bottom rung. We can use his arrogance against him!”. Hayato smiled and said “You think good… I like you”. “Thanks!” Janna said with a smile. Hayato’s smile faded after a few moments as he continued “Next about how each member handles their own circle… which from what I gather is only the case because they have their own interests. It's not considered part of the court structure. For example, Pied Piper? He used Ukobach, really weak Persona that are basically the embodiment of minions… he used them for much of the labor in that Forest Concert Hall of his”. “I see… so these guys got flunkies eh…?” Janna mused. Hayato nodded, saying “Yes… Pied Piper simply desired to have a Concert Hall that would operate ad infinitum… and I know the desires of a few other members”. Keiji listened intently now as Hayato said “The robed one, ‘Morgana’, wants status. I’m not sure what drives her to this logic, but she things status will bring her power and she aims to be the top… and likewise, the Persona she employs aid in this. They are exceptional in espionage”. Haru sighed deeply, saying “I see… so assassins”. Hayato shook his head, saying “No… try stealth-types. Spies, thieves, assassins…. The list is large”. “I see… she could be watching now then…” Janna mused. “Doubtful… she went to see Bannik… means the info her boys are feeding her aren’t enough to for her to work her noggin…. Speaking of, Bannik” Hayato spoke, answering Keiji and moving on “I know his position…. Court Seer…. And Noble”. “A Noble…? What would that even mean for a group like that…?” Haru asked. “I dunno but what I do know is that of them, he’s the most dangerous…… he’s got infallible precognitive powers… further, with his power he can literally go across town instantly” Hayato answered “As for what he desires… he wants live a simple, routine, but fruitful life…. And so he’s taken up foreseeing things for the leader and recording everything he’s predicted”. “Ah shoot…. Means he ain’t a tough nut to crack….” Janna moaned, sighing. Keiji spoke, saying “We leave him then. There must be others that are more worth our attention… and in our paygrade so to speak”. 

 

 

Haru nodded and Hayato smiled, saying “Now my suggestion… Bean Nighe. She’s the head maid of the court”. Janna, Keiji, and Haru just stared at Hayato incredulously, before Janna finally said “Welp. Knew this was too good to be true. Damn thing has rabies”. Hayato remarked “So do you but I ain’t complaining… and that’s not all. Think about it. If she’s head maid, then who would she likely serve constantly?”. Keiji stared until Haru gasped. Both him and Janna looked at her, at first with interest and then shock as Haru said “She must serve the leader!”. Hayato nodded and said “To add a salmon to this sushi… she also is one of their logistics officers”. “A what now?” Janna asked. “A member that handles the numbers of an organization… things like calculating supplies, manpower, coordinates… that kinda thing” Keiji responded. Janna thought about, then smirked “Meaning… we can not just get the leader’s name… but accurate readings on just about everything!”. Hayato nodded, saying “Yep. After that, I’m hoping to go after Reynard… but we’ll see. For now, I’ll serve as navigator. After the court is ruined, our deal is concluded. Deal?”. Haru looked at Keiji and Janna who each nodded and then stepped forward, offering a hand. Hayato put his paw in it and Haru shook it, saying “It’s a deal, Hayato-chan”. 

 

 

With that they split up for the day. Haru headed for home, the meeting having taken a couple of hours. They hammered out details. She liked the bow but was never comfortable with it… frankly, she’d prefer a spear of some sort. It would be hard to justify it until it was suggested: Hayato could act further as a smuggler, getting weapons to and from the forest. He’d know good hiding spots and while he’d attract attention doing it so often, he likely knew ways to stash them to do it every so often. Hayato agreed to it and with that him and Janna left. She headed for the school. She had no particular reason but she was curious if it was open. She found that, in fact, it was. She proceeded inside and eventually found her way through the somewhat empty halls until she nearly ran into her homeroom teacher as she exited room 2-B. “Ah!” the teacher exclaimed “Oh… it’s just you, Matsuhada-chan…. Geez don’t scare me like that” and her expression soured. Haru looked away, saying softly “Sorry Hatsuto-sensei… I wasn’t aware you were here at the school”. Her homeroom teachers full name was Izumo Hatsuto. She looked roughly 22 years old and was wearing rather casual clothes. A baggy red blouse, black slacks, and pink flip flops. She help a cup loosely, clearly labeled ‘#1 teacher!’. “It’s fine… you’re new so you aren’t aware of the special service we teachers offer” Izumo said. “Service…?” Haru questioned softly. Izumo nodded, saying “Yes… we hold study hall to cover materials for kids either sick or simply missed class over the week. Each teacher who does it has no real limit beyond normal school time and hold their study halls in their homeroom. Of course the rules are for each teacher decides but the two ultimate rules are no judgement and to help the students above anything else”. Haru thought a bit before Izumo said “Well since you’re here, want to stay? My room is open until 6pm”. Haru thought more and nodded, saying “I’m not behind, but it couldn’t hurt to take some time to study with a teacher available”. Izumo smiled, saying “My… what a diligent girl… sincerely, you  impress me… if only the rest of the students were like that”. Haru smiled and said “Thank you… may I go in?”. Izumo nodded, saying “Sure. Just going to refill on coffee. A teacher brought a coffee pot and it helps. Anyway… see you inside”. Haru smiled as she watched Izumo go by, feeling a small bond formed. Encouraged, she went into the room to do some studying… she had a particular idea on a good subject to explore, considering a few names that popped up recently. 

 

 

Keiji himself decided to call up a friend. Keisuke. He had to study some and the school was a distance away… plus Haru headed that way and he wasn’t sure she was ready to hang out with him yet. Keisuke answered quickly, asking “Yeah Keiji? What’s up?”. “Hey… got some spare time… thought it’d be best spent studying. You up for it?” he asked. “Sure… I was about to. Diner?”. “Yeah” he said “On me as always… see you there” and hung up. He headed for the diner and as he arrived he stopped as his phone rang. Rather than go inside, he looked and sighed. It was his home phone. He answered, asking “Hello?”. “Keiji-kun… I’ve heard you’ve been hanging out with the Janna girl… any news…?” his grandfather asked. Keiji gave a small sigh of relief and said “I have noticed that she’s become friends with Haru Matsuhada. I suspect that’s the cause of her change in behavior… it’s still strange so I’m investigating further”. He heard his grandfather chuckle on the other end, saying “Good, good… thank you Keiji-kun. I’m glad to hear she’s fine… if you wish to continue, that’s fine. Good luck… oh and I’ve given you some extra money on your allowance as thanks… please be responsible Keiji-kun”. His grandfather hung up at that. He checked his phone, a bit disturbed at how pleased his grandfather was… did they really want Janna to have her Persona… or was it that Janna and Haru were friends? He sighed and confirmed it. He had an extra 10,000 yen in his bank account. He closed his phone and headed inside. He saw Keisuke already set up and walked towards him. 

 

 

“Hey Sagiri-san. How are you?” he asked. Keisuke smiled and said “Good. Been enjoying my day off catching up on some older visual novels I haven’t finished. How about you Noori-san?”. Keiji ordered some Cola and said “Well, that job my Ojiisan gave me? Panned out. She just befriended Matsuhada-san and while its a bit strange to change so drastically so suddenly, he was satisfied and paid me ten thousand yen”. Keisuke’s eyes widened for a moment before becoming passive again and saying “You know, I shouldn’t be shocked a chore like that netted you ten thousand. Your family is somewhat rich”. Keiji looked away and said “Y… yeah. They sort of… we sort of are” in a somewhat somber tone. Keisuke was silent for several moments before sighing and saying “Sorry Noori-san… it’s unbecoming of me to get so… jealous”. Keiji shook his head and said “It’s fine Sagiri-san… I need to be more mindful of my position and attitude. It’s good practice to get called out like this”. Keisuke smiled a bit enviously, looking down at his notes and said “Just like you Noori… such a kind, heroic spirit”. Keiji smiled and said “Maybe.. I just do what I can… plus I have expectations to uphold”. Keisuke frowned a bit, saying “right… forgot how controlling your folks can be… and how they expect you to inherit the shrine”. Keiji just sighed, sipping his Cola. Keisuke finally spoke, saying “If it’s any consolation, my parents are hinting more obviously about becoming a doctor or salaryman…. So they can retire”. Keiji frowned, saying “That sucks… didn’t you want to become a criminal defense attorney?”. Keisuke nodded, saying “Yeah. After what happened last year with grandpa… it became… my dream”. Keiji nodded, saying “Yeah… like how I can’t look away from evil huh…?” and looked at the menu for a moment. Keisuke gave him a questioning look but returned to normal before Keiji noticed. “Shall we order? We have a long study session ahead of us” Keisuke suggested. Keiji nodded, smiling a bit as he felt a bond form… and grow. With that, he ordered curry while Keisuke ordered ramen. After 6 hours, they called it quits and went home. 

 

 

Haru after getting home went to her room after a quick dinner. She had intended to make a group thread on Line in order to communicate but a text from Janna told her to check her email, she made them a private chat room. Intrigued, she did so and found that it was in fact a completely private chat room… as far as appearances were concerned. The site claimed to give 100% anonymous chat rooms and complete lack of tracking programs. She entered the room and entered ‘Janna… how’d you find this? This is… a bit too good to be true’. Janna answered quick, saying ‘Simple. I needed music and had no money, hell if I was gonna work or make my mom pay…… thankfully, I knew a guy who knew about stuff like hacking and he hooked me up with a site. Youtube is fine and all but it helps to have your own copy’. They all were using their Persona names for their usernames it seemed. She couldn’t think of one and didn’t want to risk using her real name. She wasn’t sure about Keiji and Janna’s motivations. Keiji asked ‘Wait, you pirated music? That’s illegal!’. Janna answered firmly with a ‘Yeah, so?’. She cut in, saying ‘So we’re absolutely safe to speak freely on this site?’. Janna answered again, saying ‘Yeah. They keep no logs so in order to catch us, it’d have to be while we’re chatting’. 

 

 

She sighed and said ‘Alright… then in the meantime…. What’d you and fox come up with?’. A picture of a map of a small section of hanayosei and overview of the forest were uploaded to the chat by Janna and on it were some edits. Lines and notes. Clearly a route map. ‘This is the route Fox will take when transporting our goods… we figured he could transport anything within a few days and large loads would take a week. He’ll have to do it at night’ Janna posted ‘As for your stuff Haru we got ya a basic spear. Nothing special and it’s a replica but a little work and it’ll do’. She nodded and answered ‘I did ask for a spear. Thank you Hoichi’. She had almost typed Janna but corrected her near mistake. Keiji was next, saying ‘By the way, where is he staying? I mean he must be near one of us for communication purpose if he does things at night’. Janna responded saying ‘My place… well outside my place. Plenty of shrubs that block view and we live near the forest so a fox will surprise no one’. ‘Well… then when will we begin scouting the forest? We need to do so soon. Wait too long and exams will come up. It’s getting closer to May’ Haru asked. Janna answered with an exhausted emoji, saying ‘Thanks for reminding me… but good point. I’m good whenever just text me or message me’. Keiji answered asking ‘Then tomorrow?’. Janna answered positively and she answered ‘Yes… I have no plans beyond school’. Keiji then said ‘Alright. After school we head to the forest… lets the fox know Janna’. Janna posted ‘Sure thing. Night’ and left the chat room. She said her goodbyes and left as well, heading to bed for the night. 

 

 

She went to school the next day and in homeroom she let her mind wander. She was a bit worried about the forest since Deidre was no longer her Persona… she now had Matsuo and Pixie. That was it. She was slightly worried about how it’d go with just the two. However, she realized as school ended she needed to stop worrying as doing so would bring nothing but hesitation, something that could get her hurt, or worse killed. Even so, she couldn’t shake the unease she felt as she left the school. She eventually found her way to the forest’s edge and went inside 50 feet as they agreed to. She stayed on the path leading in and kept in view of the street entrance to the forest. Soon after, she saw Janna and Keiji approaching, but both looked… tense. “What’s wrong?” she asked. “Noth’in” Janna said immediately, clearly not wanting to talk about it. Keiji just sighed and said “Nothing serious thankfully”. She stared at each for a moment, before sighing and saying “Alright then…”. It was then that Hayato came through the bushes, duffel bag in his mouth. He dropped it before them and said “There you go. Weapons delivered”. Haru nodded and they went into the bag, getting their things before Hayato said “Alright. Our goal is to find Bean Signe’s lair without her knowing and find the ideal area to ambush her. I’ll handle figuring her schedule out another time… my ability to detect scents will let me know if she frequents a specific path”. The group nodded and with Hayato leading the way they headed into the forest. 

 

 

The forest was quiet and so it made sneaking difficult. However the only enemies that came by at first were pixies, which Hayato smelled ahead of time and dove into the bushes, prompting them to as well. After they’d pass, they’d continue. Eventually Keiji looked at her and asked “So… a spear. Why?”. She sighed a bit, looking at him and then Janna, who stared curiously, and said “I was curious and so I started to try from a young age… one of the butlers my parents bought to ensure my safety at first refused to let me continue…. But eventually decided to tutor me on it”. Janna stared and then said “You know, I keep forgetting your rich”. Haru looked away as Keiji said “Used to be…. Don’t forget Janna, she turned her father in. You really think he took that laying down…?”. Janna was silent for a moment before stopping and turning to Haru, bowing fully and saying “I’m sorry Haru-chan. That was insensitive of me…” and stood fully, clearly not used to bowing. Haru felt her cheeks grow a little red and she only nodded. Hayato suddenly stopped and said “Hold on…. We’ve got some things in coming. North of us…. Smell big” and dove into the bushes. They did again as well. That was when it walked by. A 6 foot tall pure white horse with blonde hair and a spiraling ivory horn walked onto the animal trail they were following out of the woods. On it sat a pale boy with glowing purple eyes and a blue hair with a bowl cut hairstyle. He was 6 feet and 9 inches tall. He wore white combat boots, blue jeans, and a white metallic jacket with criss-crossing square patterns on it. He held a white spear that was one solid chunk of white iron ending in a large, star-pointed tip, the sharpest point extending forward. It and what can only be described as a unicorn looked around, the Unicorn saying “Master… me know… me smell huumans in here… they gone now”. The boy looked through the woods intently, searching for them clearly and said with a melodic, pleasing voice “It’s fine Unicorn” and patted the unicorns neck with his free hand, saying “Let’s continue our route….. If there are humans they are likely fleeing”. “Yes, master!” the unicorn cried and bolted into the woods, the boy holding on as it did so.  

  
  


As they came out of the bushes 5 minutes later, Hayato said “Good… we avoided one of their tougher guard units”. “Were they…. Strong?” Janna asked “Cause when I saw them… my Persona was…. Scared”. Hayato nodded, looking at each of them in the eye and said “I saw what that particular pair is capable of. A pack of lilim, these child-like female demons, got uppity and started a small rebellion……. Those two came in and single-handedly slaughtered them all. No mercy was given beyond the fact he let them make a break for it. He gave them a full 5 minutes before doing the deed… worse, one in particular he left alive and dragged her deeper into the forest”. Haru almost felt herself vomit but fought it back, saying “So… we’re in trouble… if they catch us”. Hayato nodded, saying “Yeah… though that pair isn’t usually out on mondays. Guard duties must have shifted…. Didn’t expect that honestly”. “It's fine…. You can smell them coming, so we’ll just follow your lead” Janna said. Hayato stared at her and nodded, saying “Thank you… now one last thing. We should probably fight some of these things. You need to get stronger and just avoiding them won’t do it”. Haru nodded, saying “I agree… I’m not fond of combat but just holding back will not accomplish our goal of defeating the court…”. Keiji piped in, saying “Then the next group around our power we take head-on?”. Haru and Janna nodded, and Hayato said “Then let’s continue”. With that, they continued, moving through the animal trail, not knowing where it went. By now sunset began to settle in. After half an hour they found their new enemy. Hayato warned them and rushed into the bushes just as they appeared. 

 

 

Three heavily armored figures clattered towards them on the trail. They wore silver-colored armor with no discernable body in them, with regal, flowing capes. They each wielded 3-foot long crusader long swords and moved as though they were normal humans wearing clothes… yet the empty gaps present in the armor proved nothing existed beneath. “Halt!” one yelled, pointing their sword to them “You three! You have a strange power about you, as you can see our real forms! You’re coming with us!”. Janna laughed and said “Bring it, tin-cans! Come, Hoichi!” and with that pulled out her guitar quickly. “They’re Persona-users! Quick, subdue them!” the second yelled, rushing forward. However, it moved too late and Janna began playing, summoning Hoichi. Hoichi moved quickly and began to play itself, the air around the approaching armored figure shimmering. It started to slow, before eventually falling down before them, making snoring sounds. “Dammit, they got Sir!” one of the figures said “You won’t get away with this! We are loyal servants of Madam Aoife!”. Keiji retrieved his gohei from his belt and began to sway it, summoning Pwyll, who now sported a new look. He still wielded the viking broadsword, but it was more jagged and cracked. It’s armor also looked much lighter and it wore a hood that formed a 1-foot cloak down its back that was black in color. “Pwyll!” he shouted, willing Pwyll forward to attack the sleeping enemy. The other two rushed forward but were too late as Pwyll floated above the sleeping foe and stabbed its broadsword into it. The being screamed loudly, flailing. Haru gripped her locket and summoned Matsuo, saying “Matsuo! Put that one to sleep” and pointed to the right one, then turned to Janna “Janna! Get the other!”. Janna nodded and played more, saying “Alright Hoichi, get to work!”. Hoichi appeared and began playing while Matsuo took a drink of sake and spit it directly at one of the approaching shadows. However, it didn’t slow them down and they moved to attack Pwyll.

 

 

Pwyll however reacted fast, pulling its sword out and blocking one while avoiding the other. Unfortunately for it, the third shadow made a second swing following the first immediately and Keiji yelped as the blow struck true. He recalled Pwyll and prepared his practice stick while Haru looked and said “Matsuo, heal him!”. Matsuo moved to Keiji, tipping its sake bowl onto the spot the cut happened. When the liquid touched it, the wound sealed up. “Thanks Haru! Pwyll! Come forth and trample them!” He cried, swaying his gohei and preparing his katana. “Hoichi! Plan B, zap them!” Janna said, continuing to play. The second shadow began to stand, albeit shaking a bit, while the first charged for Matsuo. However Pwyll appeared and rushed for the shadow, moving fast and punched the shadow in the helmet, creating a large dent in it. It cried out, falling over though not defeated, simply dazed. Hoichi played and from the tip of its Biwa a bolt of lightning flew out, striking the shadow helping the second shadow in the head. It cried out, backing off a bit. She took her chance and said “Matsuo! Use Agi!”. Matsuo responded by placing its hand on the surface of the sake in its plate and lifting it, flame coming from the sake and forming a small 3-inch diameter fireball. It then flung its hand forward, sending the fireball surging forth. Meanwhile, Pwyll held a hand out, the hand glowing green and a small area around the downed enemy glowing green. Janna kept playing, saying “Alright Hoichi, get in close and finish it!”. Hoichi stopped play and stopped floating, instead using the ground to propel itself forward quickly. The two shadows looked at Hoichi, his target preparing by putting its sword between it and Hoichi. He reacted by swinging its biwa and sending one crashing into the other. “Ha! I may look like some kinda back-line fighter, but I’m really just a scrapper!” Janna cried “Now follow up!” to which Hoichi replied by playing and sending a bolt of electricity into the one that had hardly been harmed. Haru looked between them as Hayato said suddenly “Back-ups coming! Wrap it up fast!”. Haru nodded and had Matsuo once again launch a fireball at the enemy Pwyll was fighting. Keiji noticed and had Pwyll pivot the enemy he was fighting into the fireball, making it cry out and burst into a series of shadows. “One down! Two left!” Keiji cried out. 

 

 

Janna cried out and flew back much to Haru’s shock. She looked and saw Hoichi had been sent flying to the ground by a sucker punch from one of the armored shadows left. The other went to slash but both she and Keiji responded by yelling “Janna!”. Pwyll rushed forward while Matsuo’s eyes glowed a bright pink color as pink energy surrounded the enemy about to attacks head. They stopped for a moment, tapping their helmet, then looking at her. That moment was all that was needed for Pwyll to arrive and launch a fireball at the enemy that was preparing to defend itself with a fireball, something it didn’t expect and cost it. With it handled there was one left. As if realizing this, the figure backed up, before turning and trying to run. As she helped Janna up Keiji yelled “No you don’t! Pwyll!” and summoned Pwyll to chase the armored being down. It only took a minute before Pwyll tackled it to the ground. Before he could do anything though, Hayato said “Time’s up, they’re here! They’re weak but you haven’t gotten to rest yet”. The bushes rustle as he moved to another location. They all stared as past Pwyll they approached the shadow Pwyll had pinned down. 

 

 

Coming at them were a pair of 5 foot long white spirits with black dog-like heads. They were very thin, being only 4 inches thick. “Matsuo! Psi!” Haru said, gripping her locket and summoning Matsuo. Janna played her guitar, saying “Hoichi! Put the other to sleep!” and summoned Hoichi who began to play. The air around the right spirit shimmered and it fell asleep while Matsuo’s eyes shimmered pink and the head of the left spirit began to glow pink and it slowed its movements to a near stop. “Keep going, Matsuo!” Haru ordered, as she began to sweat a bit. She realized a potential problem with Persona now. Using them constantly was taxing. Her mind began to feel light and it became hard to focus. “Haru! Yo, Haru!” Janna said, going to her and shaking her. Haru’s focus snapped back and Matsuo vanished. She looked at Janna, panting heavily and said “S-sorry… that was… way more taxing than I thought”. Pwyll had let go of the shadow it pinned and rushed to stopped spirit, slashing at its head. It dodged out of the way and began to move its paws. The air around Pwyll glowed green as did the spirits paws. Haru stared and said “Keiji, recall Pwyll, quick!”. Janna started to play her guitar with one hand, summoning Hoichi again and said “I’ve got you covered so do it!” and had Hoichi move. Pwyll began a hasty retreat as the spirit tilted its head back for a few seconds and then suddenly spat something at Pwyll. Keiji stopped swaying and twirling his gohei, realizing the danger and sidestepped the lob of spit the spirit had launched at him. “Too close…” Keiji muttered, looking at the quickly approaching spirit. He yelped as in a minute it closed the 50 foot distance and was about to spit on him again… until Hoichi’s biwa smashed down on its head, sending the spit onto the ground. Hoichi then moved and attempted again but the spirit retreated, avoiding the attack. Haru had moved to flank the spirit and thrusted her spear into its side, making it cry out. “Pwyll!” Keiji cried, swaying his gohei and summoning Pwyll again. It rushed forward and with a decisive slash cut the head of the shadow off. It and the severed head melted into shadows, leaving nothing behind. 

 

 

However it wasn’t over yet. Suddenly, Keiji groaned and held his head, swaying a bit as a howling sound rang out. Pwyll followed suit before vanishing and Keiji fell to the ground. “Noori-san? What’s wrong!?” Haru asked, worried. Janna looked at Keiji then turned around and yelled “The other spirit’s up!” she said, playing her guitar. Hoichi did too and suddenly a dull red aura surrounded the approaching spirit. “No! Matsuo!” Haru cried, summoning Matsuo and having it move between the spirit and Keiji…. Just in time as well. The spirits eyes glowed pink and Matsuo’s head glowed pink too. Haru winced a bit, feeling a slight pain in her head but not much. “Psi…?” she whispered. Janna asked “What?” and kept playing. This time, both Haru and Matsuo glowed green from the music. “It used Psi… the same ability Matsuo has!” Haru said “I think there are mystical elements at play… kinda like the alchemical elements”. Janna stared as she watched Matsuo moved not exactly faster than before but reacted quicker and was more precise. “I see…. So like elements in a video game?” Janna asked. “Yes… it explains the repetitive abilities” Haru answered. “If that’s true then we can exploit that” Janna said, then played again, having Hoichi send a lightning bolt at the spirit. It struck and the spirit recoiled away, only to get pummeled into a tree by Matsuo. 

 

 

Haru recalled Matsuo and dug into herself, pulling out Pixie. She summoned Pixie and had it fly over to Keiji. “Cover me!” she said “I’m going to use Patra on Keiji!”. Janna nodded and had Hoichi rush the shadow that had pulled itself from the cracked tree and now roared at Hoichi to little effect. Pixie’s hands glowed as they touched Keiji’s head which was swaying around aimlessly. However, it did nothing as the swaying continued. “It’s… not working!” Haru said, worried. Hoichi attempted to slam the spirit with it’s Biwa, but the spirit quickly shifted away and lashed out by spitting in Hoichi’s face. “Ew, ew, ew!” Janna yelled and wiped her face rapidly. Hoichi vanished and the spirit, realizing nothing was holding it back anymore turned to the vulnerable Keiji and Haru. “No!” she shouted, having Pixie turn and send a small lightning bolt at the spirit. It was hardly affected though and sped into pixie, biting it harshly. She screamed as she felt the teeth sink in and the bones flex. “Haru!!” Janna screamed and started play, wincing. She had Hoichi rush and smash the shadow’s head with its biwa. The shadow burst into black liquid that dissipated in seconds. Haru collapsed to the ground, the force keeping her in the air gone. “Dammit…!” Janna cried, kneeling near Haru and checking her. Janna bit her lip as she stared at it. On the collarbone, Haru was bleeding. Thankfully they were gaping holes and were only the size of needles, but the bite had done damage. A lot of it by comparison. “Don’t… worry” Haru breathed, gripping her necklace and summoning Pixie “Let me… help…” and Pixie placed its hands on Janna’s face. Janna suddenly felt relieved, asking “What the…. Why…?” and stopped when she saw Haru’s smile. “You… were getting pale… figured you had been… poisoned” and had pixie place a hand on her own head, and began to channel healing into her. She felt her head swim more and more but slowly felt her body heal. 

 

 

Keiji came to his senses as Haru healed herself. “What… happened…?” he asked. “You got put outta commision and that spirit chomped Haru’s Pixie…. She’s recovering now but we nearly lost her” Janna answered. “Then… why is that knight standing there?” he asked. Janna’s head snapped towards where the last shadow was and saw it was nearly upon them. She moved to grab her guitar but the shadow held its hand up and said “Wait! I do not wish to fight! I am clearly outclassed… but something’s bothering me. I wish to speak to the fairy user about it”. To prove it, it stabbed its sword into the ground. Haru looked at the shadow, letting go of her locket. She was ready to pass out but asked “What?”. “Why do you fight? We Airgetlam fight because Madam offered us a place to belong and glorious battle… yet seeing you, I feel I am forgetting something” it said. Haru stared and then smiled gently, saying “I fight… to protect my current guardian… and the power to seems rare”. The shadow stared, then laughed and said “Yes… yes! I had completely forgotten!.... The most exhilarating feeling is fighting to protect something and succeeding…. This place has made me forget my purpose… I am Airgetlam, the silver-handed prince! I inspire others to never give in! Please, let me join your cause!”. Haru nodded and said “Please… this experience has shown me I could use some more power”. With that the Airgetlam and its sword turned into light and condensed into a ball, and then shot into Haru’s locket. “Wow…. so you can talk to them too…?” Janna said in disbelief. “Of course” Hayato said, coming out of the bushes “They are shadows after all”. 

  
  


“Shadows…?” Haru asked. She knew what shadow was but wanted to confirm it was what she thought it was. “Yes. That’s what they are called. They are the Persona of humanity gone awry, both past and present. These specific ones technically aren’t shadow’s as jungian psychology calls it but are Persona that come from the collective sea of mankind's soul. The court offers them power and their desires in exchange for loyalty… unlike the Persona and Shadows acquired directly from tourists and town members, they don’t eat these ones”. “I see…” Haru said “So I was off”. Hayato nodded, saying “Well… there is a bit more. This place also drives free Persona to a sort of madness. Their predatory sides become more pronounced, eventually becoming their identity. You noticed the Pixie being more cruel right? That tells me they’ve been here a while to be that far gone…”. Haru went over what Airgetlam had in her head. Tarukaja, the red aura Keiji could summon likely and an ability called Pulinpa… an ability similar to the one Ukobach had just with a different infliction vector. “I see…. So each Persona truly is different” she said to herself, before standing. Janna helped her and said “We should retreat. We got our asses handed to us”. “I agree” Keiji said “It’s frustrating but it seems we’re not strong enough to go deeper yet”. Hayato sighed and said “Understood… Janna can contact me when you’re all ready again” and turned. He led them as they navigated through the forest. Night had begun to fall and with Haru injured they needed to retreat. Then again, each of them had been through a lot individually. 


	7. Chapter 6: Requim Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the bittersweet victory in the forest, Haru and company return to their lives temporarily. They form bonds and help others while forces beyond them plot their demise from the shadows.

**_Chapter 6_ **

_Morgan’s Requiem Part 1_

  
  
  


At a table, a group of people sat. The table was not circular but was rectangular. It was a nice bocote wood table with engravings on it. A small mural in front of each seated position with a symbol denoting their position and importance. In front of the man who sat with the window to the city at his back was a small celtic mural depicting an elfin king commanding subjects with a dark tint to it. In front of the police superintendent on his left was a mural clearly made by vikings depicting a pair of warrior woman fighting, one using a spear and the other a sword and shield with a blue tint on it. Next to the police superintendent was a bald man wearing a pure white business suit and the beginnings of a goatee. The man also was very clearly muscular and sat a whole half foot higher than the police superintendent. Engraved into the table before him was a white tinted mural of a shadow speaking to a clearly jealous knight confronting the knight they are jealous of. Next to this man was a finely dressed and groomed CEO figure, complete with a brown suitcase nearby. The tables engraving for him beheld a yellow-tinted mural of a horned figure hiding amongst bushes. Across from the police superintendent sat an elderly man that held a cane nearby and wore an open hawaiin shirt and wore big, round-framed sunglasses. On the table before him was a mural of a queen and her army staring down a defenseless castle tinted to the color green. Next to him was a well-dressed government official, complete with a pin. His red-tinted mural depicted a japanese demon drinking on a throne of skulls. 

 

Aside from the man occupying the seat where a chairman might sit, everyone present was japanese. Each also looked somewhat aged, with the exception of the government official and the chairman-like man. However, the ‘chairman’ was clearly middle-aged. Further, he looked american. “Welcome, gentleman. Last month, we met to finalize some events that were planned. Introducing Yoi Tabe’s CEO to our fold, finalizing the details of the police raid, and getting Tetsu’s report on students with ‘Persona’... however, we seem to have come across some problems” the ‘Chairman’ said, turning to the police superintendent as he continued “Korsaro Junichi, I am quite embarressed at the result of that raid I had Haori-san arrange. Care to explain why it went so spectacularly bad, enough so that 15 officers were killed in what should have been an effortless raid?”. 

 

The superintendent stood and bowed, saying in a passive, apologetic tone “I apologize, Amayiro-sama. The officers I sent on the raid proved to be less competent than their files stated. I accept responsibility for their failure”. Haori sighed, shaking his head as he stated “The loss of personnel isn’t what’s unacceptable. It’s that now the Yakuza has another 40 pounds of meth to distribute. That 40 pounds were supposed to be in the hands of the police”. Korsaro stayed bowed and said “Of course. I apologize profusely. I should have been more careful in my selection of officers to the task”. Amayiro simply waved his hand, saying “As long as you recognize your failure and seek to make amends, that is enough for now. Get your house in order Junichi-san and we’ll try again” and proceeded to take a document and flip it over next to the small pile he had in front of him. Amayiro read the nice document briefly and said “Ah. Right… next I must address Reta-san. Your first payment to our group was…. Less than anticipated. Care to explain why?”. Reta, the CEO, nodded, saying “Yes. I’ve had a spot of trouble and have had to be more careful with my expenditures…. And my personal accounts do not have the money requested. I gave what I could. I do believe I explained why too”. Amayiro looked through the document and gave a mumble of acknowledgement followed by the statement “Yes I see now… one of your suppliers had all of its inventory burned? Junichi-san, any suspects?”. Korsaro responded with “I will need to look into it… but I do recall that our department is handling the investigation”. Amayiro nodded and said “Regardless, that makes the small payment acceptable… we’ll reduce future required payments to more reasonable levels. For now… all we need is Hijanoori-sans report and I have one last announcement… with that, this months business will conclude”. 

 

Hijanoori shook his head, saying “Nothing to report. No potentials and from what the principles are reporting, everything is continuing on-schedule”. Amayiro smiled and said “Excellent… and with that, Ju Midori I must thank you for your contributions to the Yosei Sakuru. Without your analytical abilities and great mind, we’d struggle serving our masters”. The official stood and bowed, saying “Thank you, Mayor. I am honored” and sat down. Amayiro sighed and said “With that, we can-” but stopped. The expressions on everyones face tightened as a wind blew through and an oppressive presence made itself known. Behind him was a tall figure. It was glad in a white robe and had a red face with a long nose. It had a large staff in one hand and folded its black wings over its arms like sleeves as its robes lacked sleeves. This revealed its arms to be like those of bird talons. “Bryant Amayiro” the figure stated, moving to Bryants side “The Court of the Unseen Fairy God has a new task for you”. Bryant didn’t move beyond speaking “Yes, Tengu-sama. What can we, the Yosei Sakuru, do for you?”. It laid a series of documents on the table and said “One of the lower court members ran into trouble, and another was slain. The court member is handling her own problems, but my lord, the Unseen Fairy God, has decided to give you the other task. A sign of faith”. Bryant nodded as the figure continued, saying “the court bard, Pied Piper, was slain recently. You are to find his killers and bring them before the Unseen Fairy God. Yes, if you find them, you will be granted an audience and may even expect a gift… or request one. He has given his word he will find no offense in such a thing”. Bryant nodded, saying “Y-yes Tengu-sama. I-” but stopped as Tengu simply vanished. 

 

Bryant frowned slightly, taking the documents. “Korsaro, Masasori. Cooperate to investigate this. With that, everyone is dismissed” Bryant stated sternly, stood, and left. Ju followed and Hijanoori too. Korsaro looked over the documents, sharing half. “This is serious… a member of the court killed?” Korsaro mused “Absolutely we must handle this”. Masasori looked over his half, saying “Pied Piper… that was a large asset to lose. If they’re letting us handle it, that means the court doesn’t know who did it… or the one who does isn’t speaking”. Both looked at each other and nodded, standing. “I’ll let you handle the investigation Masasori. I will email details to get into our database at a later date” Korsaro said, handing Masasori the documents and leaving. Masasori followed suit. He had some calls to make. 

 

Haru, Keiji, and Janna went their separate ways for the day after they returned from the forest and Hayato took the duffel bag to its hiding spot. She walked in, sighing a bit as she took her shoes off and put her bag up, saying “I’m home!” and walked into the living room. Hana walked in from the kitchen with a pair of plates, saying “Ah. Welcome home… was wondering where you were”. Haru smiled gently and said “Not much. I just went out exploring the forest with my new friends…. We actually met a fox. It was quite friendly”. Hana smiled and said “I’m glad to hear that…. The forest was my favorite place to explore after I turned eight. They’re quite big though so be careful alright?”. Tonight they were having the usual dinner; Miso soup, rice, pickled tsukemono, and fish. It wasn’t her favorite dinner but she had no complaints either. Plus ever since she had moved here dinners were a lot better since Hana usually sat and ate with her, something her parents never did. If she was honest, she’d never once witnessed any sort of real connection between anyone in her family. As such, even a normal dinner like this was excellent because of Hana’s company. He spoke up, asking “It’s the 19th today right…. That means golden week is getting here. You have anything you want to do?”. Haru thought about it, finally saying “Well sightseeing could be fun. I hear there are some fun things to do downtown”. Hana smiled and said “Alright… a little exploration of the metro area would do good on my legs so then that’s what we’ll do”. Haru smiled and said “Thank you… Tsurugi-san. I truly appreciate your kindness”. Hana smiled and was about to speak but then stopped and said “Of course, Haru-kun. I am your guardian. I made a legal vow to raise you as my child. I intend to do just that. If you need anything, even something that may seem trifling, go ahead and come to me about it”. Haru smiled and said “Thank you Tsurugi-san. That means a lot to me”. She could feel her bond with Tsurugi deepen at that moment. She wasn’t sure how she felt about her bonds fueling her power, but since it seemed they needed to be genuine to work, she ultimately kept her doubts to herself. 

The next morning Haru listened to a pair of girls talking as they walked along the path to the school. “So did you hear?” one asked. “About what?” the other asked “I’ve been too busy with my studies”. The first girl pulled out their phone and showed the other girl what was on screen “Apparently there’s a new thing going around called Fairy Dust. Supposedly, it makes you powerful”. The other girl just stared at her friend incredulously, saying as they passed the gates “Seriously? That’s just a rumor and that looks like a drug… I’m not going within 5 feet of that stuff”. Haru pulled out her own phone and checked. Indeed, there were ads for a new product being offered called Fairy Dust… however they were reasonable and the girl exaggerated. The powder stuff she saw was a sugar that made whoever took it to think faster. She thought the claim was still silly but it wasn’t as dangerous as the other girl made it out to be. She entered the school proper and headed for her room. 

 

Class was easy to get through. It wasn’t that the material wasn’t new or she was above it. She simply found it easy to internalize the information. For example, how there were different colored lasers and how the color affected the strength and danger of the laser. There was a lot of information about this topic but she found it easy to understand if she payed attention and kept up with the teacher and textbook. She ate lunch alone and afterwards went back to class, doing well to keep up with the lectures and taking notes. After school, before she could decide what she wanted to do, Janna approached her and asked “Hey Haru. Wanna hang out? I’ve got plenty of free time”. She checked her phone for the time, asking “Where are we going?”. Janna smiled and said “I kinda skipped lunch, so I was thinking we could go grab some food from Mickey’s”. Haru tilted her head a bit, asking “Mickey’s…? Never heard of that…”. Janna replied “Of course not… It’s a local place. Only have three locations here. Owned by Yoi Tabe Foods, one of three companies that control the supermarkets in this town… though if anymore competition have accidents, he’s poised to take over”. Haru gave a small laugh and said “Well… I’ve never had supermarket food. It’ll be an interesting experience”. Janna gave a smirk and said “Don’t lose your head, it’s just fast food. Come on. It’s on me” and started to leave school, Haru deciding to follow. 

 

Keiji himself had a somewhat difficult day. While they ultimately prevailed against the enemy, the end result was a complete retreat and failure to fulfill their objective: Scout out the enemy’s lair and find a place to set a trap. These thoughts bothered him immensely and he kept thinking of ways to improve. It wasn’t until the end of the day that the idea of visiting Abar Kami came to mind. He pulled out his phone and dialed Abar’s number. He listened as after a few rings, Abar answered “This is Abar Kami-sama’s dojo. Abar speaking, how may I help you today child?”. Keiji responded asking “Hello Kami-sama. I was hoping to get a lesson today… are you available?”. Abar was silent for a moment before saying “Yes. My class ended half an hour ago. I was going to go home but since you are coming, Noori-kun, I can hold off on closing up. I expect you here within ten minutes… afterwards I’m charging extra. Good luck, Noori-kun”. Keiji sighed as the line went dead and he took off. He was after all a mile from the place. Thankfully, he was in shape on the insistence of his grandparents and so made it in 15 minutes, albiet worn out. Abar stared at him slightly disappointed as he arrived at the door and leaned against it weakly. Abar stared for a moment before smiling and said “While you failed this is still impressive… yes the potential to become a kendo star is in you. Come. I’ll give you a place to rest and water before your lesson… my star pupil” and led him inside… and as promised gave him a futon to rest on and two bottles of mineral water. 

 

Haru was surprised. When Janna said it was owned by a company that owned a third of the supermarkets in Hanayosei, she had expected some food like from a restaurant. However, the experience was very different. The food was lower quality than she expected and yet it was still good. Further, it was ready within minutes. Janna was the one to retrieve their food. She had paid for half and Janna paid for the other half, not because Haru didn’t want to pay but because Janna insisted on paying her share. As Janna sat their tray down, she picked up her burger and asked “Mickey’s…. Why that name?” and took a bite of the burger. “The CEO, a guy named Onsen Reta, saw a movie over in America one time that featured a character named Mickey. When he was trying to decide a name for the new fast food chain, he decided Mickey’s was a good one…. Even though the character he was thinking about when naming this place was a mouse and the joint’s mascot is a hedgehog” Janna explained, eating her food. Unlike how she normally ate, Janna showed some self control. She didn’t chew openly and noisily, instead following regular manners. Further, she used napkins often to clean up her face. She herself observed her normal table manners. “Say Haru… I asked before about it but I brushed off your answer… that was when I just had a shadow in me…. But I’m curious and more open now. Why did you turn your dad in?” Janna asked. Haru stopped and thought about it. She had never truly been sure. Sure, she could say Hana convinced her. She could say she was just doing the right thing… but what provoked those thoughts? Haru spoke, saying “I… I don’t know if I want to admit it… it’s selfish… and childish”. She discovered the reason. She thought that reason was as she said. Childish and selfish. She had wanted to have a chance at a real family life and hana offered it… even if he didn’t realize it. “Eh…. it’s fine. I’ve had plenty of tantrums as a teen. Lay it on me. I ain’t judgin” Janna said. Haru sighed deeply and said “Well…… my parents had this idea that in order to toughen me up and make me a worthy heiress…. They would remove themselves from my life beyond the bare minimum…. Which left me without a real childhood….. Hana took a year but he eventually offered to be my guardian and protect me from them if I turned over evidence of his wrongdoings and turned him in….. I….” Haru said, stalling for a minute before saying “I took it as him offering me a chance at being with a family that actually cared about me…….. I still took days to decide but….. I ultimately did”. Janna simply stared at Haru, with a look of almost pity. It turned into one of understanding as she said “I getcha…. Sometimes, parents take somethin’ from you that you can’t replace… I… my father let those things take my Persona and then just abandoned my mother and me to our fate. It’s… not fair”. Janna looked away and with an almost hint of jealousy said “You got an offer most don’t get and you took it. Nothin wrong with that. Don’t ever regret it, ya hear?”. Haru stared at Janna for a moment before nodding with a gentle smile and saying “Yeah. I hear you, Janna-san”. She felt like she had gotten closer to Janna…. Though that feeling she felt when a social link improved let her know this was true. She wasn’t sure she liked the idea of social links but she was sure she’d come to grips with it eventually. 

 

Keiji blocked a strike from Abar Kami. He was having a sparring match with Abar, at Abar’s insistence. He blocked another. Then another. He kept blocking as Abar kept attacking with keen precision and quick reflexes. He was aiming for Keiji’s next weak spot. This was their third match. Abar’s next strike slipped by Keiji’s defense and rudely slammed into his shoulder, sending him tumbling. “Point. Good job Keiji… this time you blocked twenty-five strikes, as opposed to your first time of five. Let’s take a five minute break, then we’ll resume” Abar said and moved to sit down on a nearby bench. Keiji did too, panting heavily. He was silent for several minutes before saying “Kami-sama… thank you. That was a good lesson. I’m glad to see I’m starting to make progress”. Abar chuckled saying “Indeed… still nowhere near my peak but you’ll get there. What took me twenty days is taking you a mere two hours. I was right when I thought you had potential”. Keiji thought for a moment and asked “Kami-sama… were you a kendo pro at some point?”. Abar stopped moving for a moment almost completely, and stared at a window. He shook his head and said “No. I’m Kami-sama. I am the man that is the peak of all humanity. I am a black belt in five different styles of martial arts, I am proficient in Nin-jutsu, I am a master at kendo, and I graduated from Tokyo U as an honor roll student with perfect scores. That’s all”. Keiji stared, frowning a bit. Sure, he’d seen the certificates to prove it but he was unsure. Then again Abar’s talent with a kendo stick was undeniable. “I see… alright. Thank you for answering” he said, taking a drink of the mineral water Abar kept near the resting benches. Abar made it a point to keep him hydrated and according to him he did with other students. Abar himself drank some and said “Alright. Let’s continue practice. There’s a tourney coming up and for your final, you’re going to compete”; He then stood. Keiji nodded and said “Understood Kami-sama. I won’t disappoint you”. Abar’s smile and the sensation he felt when he formed a social link let him know that he had just gotten closer to Abar. “Now… this time I'm going 5% faster. Let’s see how you keep up!” Abar said before beginning the sparring match. Keiji was shocked and found himself on the defensive. He only blocked fifteen strike before getting jabbed in the shoulder again. Abar truly had been holding back before. Keiji could only wonder how skilled Abar was at Kendo… was he really such an amazing man?

 

Haru hung out with Janna some more before heading home. Once she arrived, she saw Hana sitting on the couch, with a table next to it. He was reading the newspaper. “I’m home!” she announced, taking her shoes off and putting them in the rack before heading inside. Hana looked at her and asked “Good to see you home safe… it’s quite late. Where were you?” with a tone that didn’t suggest anger but instead concern. “I was with Janna. She wanted to treat me to some food and we got to talking about our pasts” she answered. Hana nodded and said “I assumed it was something like that. Do be careful though and inform me ahead of time…. The police still haven’t figured out who caused that mass kidnapping of kids”. She nodded and said “Understood. I’ll be upstairs studying if you need me” and proceeded to head to her room to do just that. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to spend time with him but she wanted to study. She did have a life outside protecting Hanayosei and it would no one any good if she neglected that life. Also, she may learn something that would help her out. 

 

Keiji returned home after his lesson. He sent a text message halfway through his lesson that he would be somewhat late due to taking a lesson from Abar to his father. His father said he’d smooth things over with his grandparents and to not worry. He sighed and began heading home. That was when he received a call. It was from his other friend, Yuuta. He answered, saying “Yes Mamori-san?”. Yuuta said “Hey… are you available? I need to talk to you”. He replied, saying “Sure… the diner?”. “Yeah… see you soon” Yuuta replied and hung up. Keiji texted his father again to inform him he’s going to help a friend with something and then put his phone away and headed to the diner in town. It was only a few blocks away so he didn’t need to worry about distance. Once he arrived he sat at a table and when asked ordered his usual cola. Eventually Yuuta arrived, sitting down across from him and said “Hello Noori-san. Thank you for seeing me”. Keiji nodded, saying “It’s no problem Mamori-san… what is it you needed to talk about?”. Yuuta looked out the window in a way that conveyed he was uncomfortable and troubled but needed help. He sighed and said “I’m… having some issues at home. It’s… sort of serious…. I was going through my brother's things since he moved to Tokyo recently and…. I found evidence he’s part of the yakuza. A letter saying if he wanted to be a real member he had to get a tattoo”. Keiji stared at Yuuta, taking the knowledge in, and finally said “I thought it was strange… Most folks that grow up here stay here until after college, and otherwise pick up part-time jobs….. That’s….” and fell silent. He had no idea what to say for several minutes, finally saying “It’s not my place to judge. It’s a hard decision to make… to be silent or not. You’ve got to make it. Just think about one thing… is he your family?”. Yuuta looked at Keiji, staring for a moment before sighing in relief, saying “I came looking for an answer… and instead you gave me confidence to try to find one….. Thank you Keiji. I can always count on you to help me when my head isn’t being clear”. Keiji smiled and said “Thank you. I’m honored you think of me that way, Yuuta”. They hung out for a while more, talking about his brother, before Keiji finally had to go home and get to bed. Yuuta decided to stay at the diner and enjoy a nice dinner. 

 

The next day was normal for Haru. She woke up to a nice breakfast, she went to school and met Janna along the way, talking with her a bit. She did well in her classes, and was ready to leave at the end of the day. She decided to spend some time with Keiji. She hadn’t let the change Pwyll underwent slip by her notice and was curious about it. She had decided that the best way to find out was to ask him directly. She left the classroom and headed to the third floor where Keiji would be. As she entered the hallway, she saw him leaving a classroom. They made eye contact and approached one another. “Hello, Noori-senpai” she greeted. “Likewise, Matsuhada-san… do you need something?” he asked, returning her greeting. Haru knew asking to see him in private would arouse suspicion and so took a different approach, hoping he’d catch the hint “I’m doing some extracurricular research on advanced topics but find myself stumped about something… you’ve been kind to me so far, so I was hoping you’d help if you aren’t busy”. Keiji stared for a moment before nodding and saying “I’m not busy, so of course I can help. Does the library work?”. Haru nodded and Keiji led the way. While she heard whispers, they didn’t seem to be the kind of whispers alluding to some scandalous affair, which meant that she succeeded in her goal. 

 

Once in the library and at the back, Keiji spoke first, asking “So. What’d you wanna talk about?”. Haru looked at him as she perused for a topic and asked “I noticed Pwyll looked different in the forest. Why was that?”. Keiji thought for a dozen or so seconds before replying “You’re aware you’re a wild card, correct? Well there is another power…. Called the ‘Ace’. Essentially I can change the arcana and powers of Pwyll, depending on my own social links and their strength.That particular Pwyll was of the hanged man”. She looked at him briefly, saying “I see…. An interesting ability…. Follows the same logic of the wild card too”. Keiji shook his head and said “I’d have to disagree…. Your ability is far more diverse. My ability is more… solitary”. His tone had a hint of sorrow to it but his expression betrayed none as he continued “However it is still helpful. If I can acquire more social links, the powers Pwyll gain increase in strength too”. Haru stared for a few moments before saying “I see… your ‘Ace’ and my ‘Wild Card’ really are different… even the social links grant power differently”. Keiji looked at her with a questioning gaze and asked “How so?”. She replied factually “My social links grant power to my Persona only at the time of their creation. Afterwards, the social links strength is irrelevant”. Keiji thought about it and said “I see… interesting. I’m very curious about your power”. Haru smiled and said “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious about yours”. Keiji thought for a moment, and then offered “We should talk about this more. It feels… nice to talk to someone about this”.  Haru smiled with Keiji as each felt a bond form and she said “So social links truly do only form from mutual feelings…. I’m glad to know that”. Keiji smiled as well, saying with a sigh of relief “Yeah… I was… concerned about how the concept might alter my perception of friendships… this will prevent that”. Haru couldn’t help but laugh a bit before looking at the bookshelf and plucking a Shakespearean play, ‘Midsummer Dream’, and said, “Well I did use an excuse so… help me figure this play out?”. Keiji stared at it, then sighed and questioned “An english play? Really? Alright…. I’ll give it a shot”. 

 

As Keiji arrived at the steps to the shrine he thought about his interaction with Haru. It wasn’t that it was wierd or anything that had him thinking. It was that they were able to make a connection. One of his fears had been that the Ace and Wild Card were incompatible and would lead to conflicts in the group. However his talk with Haru had eased that worry. He knew now that he and Haru would get along, even if they had disagreements about what to do. This thought made him happy, simply because it gave him confidence that there would be no conflicts in the group. With that thought crossing his mind, he finished ascending the shrine steps and arrived at the shrine proper. The family home was behind it, though he had to deal with something else. Someone he saw frequently and had to get to leave. However this time he hesitated. He hadn’t thought about it before but he wondered if perhaps the drunk that would find his way to the shrine perhaps was looking for more than someplace than a free bed. He approached the man slowly, watching him a bit. The man looked up at him and said “Yeah, yeah… gots ta go… give me… five minutes?”. Keiji hesitated but said “Sure… if you’re willing to talk in the meantime”. The man looked shocked, but gave a gentle smile and said “Sure, sure kid…. How can ‘ol Sanzo help ya?”. Keiji sighed and asked “You come here every night drunk… when you definitely are capable. You can drink at least weekly and last time we talked you admitted to having a home… So why come here drunk at all?”. 

 

The man stared at him, before sighing and saying “Kid… ish not a simple ansher…. But I’ll try. I’ve… seen shomthin’ tonight…. I can’t eshplain it. Shum kinda…. Wuhman in a robe…. I shaw sha robe become wingsh… and shhe flew away… like a bird”. Keiji moved and sat next to the man, asking “Are you… sure you saw that? Had you already gotten drunk?”. The man stared down at the ground before admitting “I wash already tipshy from a shelebrashion party wit my co-workers…..”. Keiji stared at the man before looking away and saying “I’ve seen it too”. The man looked at Keiji wide-eyed and in disbelief before saying with a hint of despair “Then ish true… we live amonstsh monsters…”. Keiji shook his head and said “I don’t think so… because it flew off to the forest… I don’t think it lives among humans”. The man laughed and said “One good thing about that….”. Keiji looked at the man and said “If you want to talk you can come to me. I’m only in training, but I wouldn’t mind trying to listen and help you”. The man smiled gently and said “Thanksh… you’re a good kid… namesh Shlee Sanzo…”. Keiji replied “I’m Keiji Noori. It is nice to meet you… I hope I can help you come to terms with the sightings”. While he felt the familiar warmth of a social link forming, he ignored it. He wanted to help this man and knew it would require commitment but was willing to give it. Relief from the stress of seeing members of the court. The man stood and said “Good talk kid… I’m gonna go home now…. Shee you later”. Keiji stood too and helped the man down the stairs before heading home himself. His father was waiting and asked “Where have you been?”. Keiji answered “I arrived ten minutes ago but I was dealing with the drunk….. Decided on a different approach and it seems like it might work in having him not come here anymore”. The father stared, coldly but asked in a softer tone “And this new approach?”. “Listening and helping by giving advice and words of compassion. Like I was taught” Keiji answered confidently. His father smiled and said “I see… Alright then. By all means, continue. I’ll explain things to grandfather. Dinner’s ready so help yourself” and walked off. Keiji watched him before going to do just that. 

 

Haru’s night was different. She was walking home from school when she went through the park and encountered something. A man that had a look of pure neutrality. Like he was going through life but didn’t care about the outcome. As if proof of this she saw the ragged clothes of the man and the cart near him clued her in to a fact that troubled her. The man was likely homeless. Homelessness wasn’t a major problem in japan, having only five-thousand plus recorded compared to it’s nearly one-hundred and twenty-six million population. However, despite being rare to see it wasn’t impossible to come across. That wasn’t what disturbed Haru though. It was the look the man had. Like he had completely given up and was simply running on habit. “Sir… are you… okay?” she asked slowly, stopping in front of him. The man looked up. He had a grey beard that was 2 inches long. “No. I’m not” the man said “I’ve seem to have lost the ability to care….. Yet I can’t remember how”. She stared for a moment, then asked “How… can that be?”. The man laughed and said “Kid… when you lived as long as I have, nothing shocks you anymore. I’ve lived in this town as long as I can remember…. Things happen here that no outsider can explain” but stopped and looked puzzled, saying “How did I know that…?”. Haru stared for a moment, before saying “Maybe it's because your memories are repressed rather than missing?”. The man looked at her and smiled, saying “Good point. That’s gotta be it…. You’re pretty bright huh?”. She nodded and the man's smile faded. 

 

He said “Then get outta here…. People like me and people like you shouldn’t interact. I’ll only bring disaster to you”. That was when she felt it. The warmth of a social link… however she ignored it. “If it’s all the same to you… I rather not. I… would like to help someone for a change. Rather than being helped” she said. The warmth grew and the man gave a slight smile. “Well…. Fine. Not much I can do if a kid were to sit on the bench next to me and talk…. Which would be nice” the man said, subtly admitting he did want help. She did just that and talked with him for a while. The man had many interesting things to say. Perspective, some philosophy, and most of all about politicians. “Don’t trust ‘em… the young ones. They just want power. The old ones? You can trust that they wanna keep it. The only genuine ones you can trust are those that show remorse and yet have conviction… like that toranosuke guy. Though I’m skeptical of even him. That one story did conviniently leak when he hit his stride” the man said. “Interesting… why do you have such a strong and unpopular opinion of politicians I wonder?” Haru asked. The man was about to speak but stopped and questioningly said “I did say that with passion huh? Wonder why…..”. Haru spoke again, saying “If I may guess…. I’m betting that something happened between you and a politician that either you or someone repressed”. The man looked at her now, asking “How can someone else make me repress something by the way?”. Haru said with less confidence “Honestly… I’m not entirely sure…. I’m assuming it's possible since it can be done in the first place”. The man stared at her and said “Nothing wrong with that. Just be ready to assume responsibility when you’re wrong”. Haru stared at the man for a moment before asking “That…. Was a pun wasn’t it?”. The man laughed and said “Yeah… apologies. I love them. Something I've had since childhood”. Haru looked at the setting sun and said “Sadly I do have to go… my guardian will worry. I’m Haru Matsuhada. It was nice to meet you”. The man nodded and said “Wish I could give you a name… sadly I don’t have any papers and I’ve plum forgotten my identity”. Haru frowned for a moment but said “That’s fine. I trust you’ll be here at times?”. The man nodded, saying “Yeah… I’m here on Monday, Thursday, and Sunday nights… have a nice night Matsuhada”. Haru nodded, bowed, and left. She felt a bit better having tried to help someone… and leaving with the determination to continue trying to help them. 

 

Unbeknownst to them a shadow loomed outside Haru’s house. Wearing drab white robes akin to ancient greeks, Morgan stood invisible to the world and scanned its inhabitants. She spoke telepathically to someone she would have assist her when it was time “You sure you can handle the power I’ve given you?”. A masculine voice responded, saying “Yes… I even managed to acquire a gun so those punk brats won’t know what hit them. I am going to teach my daughter that actions have consequences. Something that life apparently didn’t teach her”. Morgan replied “Good… then see you soon Yoshinori-san. Just remember. Keep them alive. Their Persona and Shadows are mine to feed on. If you kill them then I can’t”. The voice laughed and said “I know… I’ll be in Hanayosei in an hour”. Morgan went silent at that. It was against the rules normally, truly, to give mortals a Persona without express permission of the High King of the court… the Unseen Fairy God. However, she wasn’t going to accept her death and failures to these brats lying down. She was going to fight tooth and nail against fate. If she could defy fate and steal Haru’s wealth of Persona, she could fight against the entire court. To ensure this she decided to employ some psychological warfare. She had bailed the girl's father out and given him a Persona… in exchange he’d take down each of her friends. This hopefully would give her the chance she needed. She only hoped it’d work. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There it is, Chapter 6. I hope everyone enjoyed it. i have chapter 7 somewhat pre-written. It was a while ago i made it so I have to re-read it and make edits but if all goes well, expect that soon.


	8. Chapter 7: Family Fallout

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Janna comes up with an idea to increase their combat ability, and greets them to her friend, who happens to be part of the black market, specializing in weapons. After this, they are stalked by a strange man that they lure to the forest to confront. Will things go as they plan?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phgSTsVJEfU&list=PLDEBEF444C453A045&index=13
> 
> theme for when they are fighting another Persona user.

**_Chapter 7_ **

_ Family Fallout _

  
  
  


Haru slept fine and wondered what to do for the day. It was Sunday, which meant that there was no school though she still had some assigned homework. Even that though would only occupy a few hours of her time. She got onto her chat client and saw Janna had left a message for her. ‘Hey. Gotta talk to you. It's about the other day. Thinking maybe we should be better equipped for what we’re fighting against. Might have a source for that… how does Mickey’s sound? Already bugged Keiji into coming. See you around 10’ the message stated. Haru looked at the clock. It was 9. She entered a message that she’d be there and began to get ready. She went downstairs, purse in hand with her casual clothes on and said to Hana who was reading the morning paper with a cup of coffee “I’m heading out to meet up with friends. I’ll be back later!”, Hana simply nodded in understanding as she left, putting her shoes on by the door. 

 

She took a train that had a platform near where Mickey’s was and walked the rest of the way. She saw Janna as soon as she walked in and Keiji was across from her. They were in a booth. As she walked over Janna noticed Keiji staring and turned around, moving over as she realized she was there. She sat down, saying “Thank you”. “Course” Janna replied. “So… you mentioned on the chat client that you have a solution to our weapon issue” Keiji stated, sipping on his soda briefly before continuing “What was it?”. Janna gave a confident smirk and stated quietly, making them lean in “I know a guy that works the black market. He sells weapons on the side according to him… never took him up on it but I’m think’in we do that now”. Haru gave a quiet gasp while Keiji simply sighed, saying “I had a feeling…”. Haru said with a slightly worried tone “I-Isn’t buying stuff f-from the black market… i-illegal!?”. Keiji nodded, saying “Yes. It is. Kintori”. Janna simply leaned back, saying “You don’t like it we can keep using fragile ‘ol wood… against those things”. Keiji and Haru looked at each other, Haru sighing before saying “F-fine…. Then who… are we seeing?”. Janna simply smiled and said “First, lunch. Waiter!”.

 

Haru and Keiji flanked Janna as they walked down an alleyway. Haru was especially nervous while Keiji looked stoically neutral and Janna had practically oozed confidence. As they got deeper, Janna stated “Let me do the talking. I got this. Guy’s a friend”. After turning the corner, they saw a guy standing in front of a wooden door, smoking a cigarette. The man looked to be in his late 20s and wore average if ragged business clothes, including a tie. Getting closer made Haru realize they were discount business clothes. The man also had a pompadour and sharp, slanted eyes. “Hey Janna… glad to see you. Need more guitar strings? I can give the guy a call” the man said, then eyed them “Who are your friends?”. Janna smiled and answered “My friends. Helped me out of a rough spot and helped me rob somethin’ back that was robbed from me. We’re thick as thieves now”. The man gave a trusting smile and said “Great to hear… really. Alright. Then we can talk inside” and opened the door. Janna walked in with no hesitation followed by Keiji, then Haru, and finally the man himself. “Guess I should introduce myself first” the man said, tossing the cigarette onto the ground and stomping on it. One of many on the floor. “Name’s Jin Haruka” the man stated, walking to a wall and hitting the side, making it flip to reveal a series of guns, knives, and even swords “and I work the black market here in Hanayosei. However, I run a small side business getting odd things for a cheap price. Just ask Janna”. Janna smiled and said “Yep. He can get me good guitar strings for half the price I'd normally have ta pay… even got me some for free a few times”. Jin laughed, a little embarrassed, saying “That’s just because you’re a good repeat customer and at those times they were dirt cheap from my source….. But since you aren’t here for strings… are you becoming a real customer?”. 

 

Janna looked at each of her friends a bit nervously but nodded, saying “Yeah… not looking for serious stuff like guns but… we need something better than just sticks and shinai”. Jin nodded, looking between each, saying “I see. I can accommodate… plus my bosses got special rules I have to follow. New customers are limited. Even so, I’ll fulfill your needs… after introductions”. Keiji nodded, bowing and saying “I apologize for the rudeness, Haruka-san. My name is Kei-” but was cut off as Jin yelled “Wrong!”. Keiji was shocked and Jin sighed, saying “Janna… are you serious? Are they amateurs?”. Janna facepalmed and said “Dude, use a fake name! Like… Haruto Akihito!”. Haru, listening, nodded and said, bowing herself, “My name is Hinata Hatsuse”. Jin smiled and said “Got it… One Janna, one Haruto Akihito, and one Hinata Hatsuse. New customers which means you only have access to our basic stock… but they are definitely better than just ‘shinai’ and ‘wooden spears’ dear customers”. Haru looked over the ‘stock’. She quickly found the spears and walked over. “Only 2000 yen for this one…?” she asked, half muttering. “Yep” Jin said “Should be what you have though… wait. Don’t tell me you’re using stone-tipped?”. Haru nodded, saying “I am… so this is an improvement”.

 

“This katana… it's rusty but cheap… only 4000 yen” Keiji himself said, gravitating towards the katana’s, naturally. “Yep… comes with oil to clean it. Still, it’s plenty worn. Been used in a lotta movies and it's ready to snap” Jin said. Janna herself smiled, approaching the axes and picking one off the shelf saying “This one please”. Jin walked to a cabinet, opening it and pulling out a lockbox. Each of them walked to him, handing him the money he asked for. 2000 yen for Haru’s spear, 4000 for Keiji’s rusty katana, and 3000 for Janna’s axe. All of it was deposited into the lockbox and returned to the cabinet, after which he said “With that, our transaction is complete. Thank you for your patronage dear customers. I hope they meet your expectations”. Haru nodded, saying “I do too… Thank you. This will help”. Jin simply nodded and said “Then with that I must return to work… Janna, sure you don’t want me to get some strings? My source has a sale soon and I can get you a small pack for 400”. Janna thought about it, then said “Sure. I’ll be by to pay later”. Jin nodded, saying “Gotcha. See ya then. Drop by if ya want an upgrade or want somethin' else”. They all nodded, leaving. 

 

“So? What’d I saw?” Janna said, a duffel bag slung over her shoulder. “You were right, I admit” Keiji said, looking somewhat uneasy “That was a straight transaction… still. He’s clearly no good”. Haru looked at the sky, saying “I dunno… he seemed genuine”. Janna laughed, saying “Now I didn’t expect you to be on his side. Thanks. Guys a great guy, once you get to know him” and set the duffel bag down “Now we’ll let our fox buddy smuggle our stuff into the forest”. Haru thought for a few moments before saying “Why don’t we hang out today? It’s a nice day and it’s still early…. It’d be a shame to split now and head home”. Keiji nodded, saying “No objections here”. Janna asked “What would we do?”. Haru smiled and said “Well you two are natives… why not give me a tour?”. Keiji gave her a puzzled look while Janna simply smiled. 

 

The tour was very interesting. Haru got to see many, many things. The city apparently was much more prosperous than she first thought. It didn’t just have a thriving economy, but it apparently also had a full education system. It had a university campus that was nationally recognized and it was considered its own prefecture. The most shocking fact was the fact that the mayor that was elected was apparently an American, something virtually unheard of in Japan. Though it made sense, since the Noori family helped with his campaign a lot, and he apparently was considered a Noori himself due to marrying Keiji’s older sister. Their tour ended in a familiar area, the same place Janna took her and still did occasionally. The small alley that used to be a concert stage. Keiji sat on the stage with them as they continued talking. 

 

“You know, I do gotta admit” Janna stated “I’m shocked you’re fighting. Doesn’t your family worship the ‘Invisible Fairy God’?”. Keiji nodded, replying in a matter-of-factly tone “That is true… but I was raised, trained, and am expected to solve the paranormal troubles of this city… and I will. Even if my enemy is the god my family worshipped”. Janna chuckled while Haru asked “Does that mean you don’t believe in that god?”. Keiji hesitated, obviously so, before replying while staring at the sky “Honestly… I don’t know. I was expected to, and I do the rituals… but I’m not sure if it’s genuine”. “Classic case of ‘Kid forced to live up to parents expectations’. Not surprised though… the Noori are a well-respected family here in town. Makes sense that it’d be strict on its kids” Janna commented “That said… you sure you just gonna keep following them lockstep?”. Keiji hesitated. Haru was about to scold Janna for picking on Keiji when he replied “I don’t know… I do know one thing. This was the first choice I made… and I like that I had the option to make it”. Janna’s mischievous and teasing smile softened into a friendly one as she said “Then don’t let go of that. Ever”. Keiji nodded, smiling as the sun began to set, bringing the shadows to their meeting spot. As they left, Janna got suspicious. She had noticed a man that had been sitting at a cafe table when they came and only when they left did the man, folding his newspaper and standing to walk parallel to them. Janna slowed and the man slowed, she sped up the man sped up. “Guys… that guy over there. Who is he?” Janna asked, alarmed. Haru looked and her eyes widened, whispering “Father…?” in a tone showing her terror. Janna went wide eyed, asking “Wait, really!?”. Keiji asked “Wait… what?”. Janna began moving quickly, saying “Just hurry. We need to get closer to the forest. That man is Haru’s father and I have a feeling he’s here for revenge”. Keiji simply nodded and rushed to follow, the man in quick but patient pursuit. 

 

Once they arrived in the forest they headed for the forest stage. They knew it was the most open area and the best area for a fight. Further, seconds after they arrived Hayato arrived, duffel bag in his mouth. Hayato put the bag on the floor, saying “Ah. You’re here…. What are you doing here?”. “We’re about to be attacked. Haru’s father is stalking us and I get the feeling it isn’t because he wants to apologize” Janna answered, reaching in and retrieving her axe. Keiji retrieved his katana and Haru her spear. After the turned around the man himself stepped through. Yoshinori Matsuhada. “Haru” the man said “You finally stopped running. Made me walk a long way, you brat” with a tone dripping with venom and sternness. “You’re not supposed to be talking to me Oto- I mean Matsuhada” Haru responded, gripping the spear “Leave and I won’t tell Hana about it”. Yoshinori laughed and replied with “Haru, haru, haru… I gave you good tutors, and you excelled despite my orders… and yet you do not seem to understand the obvious. Thanks to the patrons of this forest, I’ve risen above the laws of this pitiful country. All I need is for you to say you falsified evidence and I’ll be freed”. 

 

“Yeah, and how are you do’in that, you old fart?” Janna demanded, her expression showing anger. “Simple. With the help of the patrons… they’ll steal her ‘Persona’ and her ‘Shadow’, leaving her empty and obedient”. “How dare you!” Keiji yelled “She’s your daughter! How could you do that to her!?”. Yoshinori sneered and said “Boy. You don’t know the world. You need to be ruthless, cutthroat to survive. I tried teaching my daughter that, but she failed to learn. So I must try a new teaching method. Besides, she is mine and I can raise her as I want!”. Haru shook her head, saying strongly “No, Yoshinori. I won’t let you. This Persona is mine, and Mine alone!”. Yoshinori sighed, saying “You think you ever had a choice?” before power flared around him. Each of them gasped, as did Hayato as Yoshinori yelled “To me, Eligor!”. From his aura, a red-armored individual wearing a horned helm and yellow cape astrid a red horse that was 6 feet tall appeared, its total height being 11 feet. It wielded a single triple-pointed spear in one hand and the horses reins in the other. 

 

Keiji summoned Pwyll immediately, which now wore a cloak adorned with many white feathers and its helm had its colors more vibrant than previously, and had it rush and push Haru away before backpedalling to avoid the spear thrown by Eligor. Haru summoned Matsuo and it immediately spilled its sake in front of Haru. It spread and formed a barrier around them both quickly, which slowed the next spear enough that Haru was able to narrowly avoid it. Janna summoned Hoichi and it began to play a tune. As it did, Eligor’s arms glowed a dull red color. “Hmph… more troublesome than I thought. Feh! I am Yoshinori Matsuhada, Japan’s fifth greatest businessman! I will not be bested by mere children!” Yoshinori declared. Eligor likewise created another spear in its hand and charged right at Keiji. Pwyll retreated to Keiji and moved him aside as Eligors weapon doubled in size before slamming into where Keiji was. As it pulled its spear back to itself, it returned to its regular size. Haru responded by switching from Matsuo to Airgetlam and having it rush at Eligor, shouting “Don’t you dare target my friends, Yoshinori!”. Eligor spun, pulling on its reins to make its horse rear back, flailing its front legs and nearly smacking Airgetlam before it retreated slightly. Hoichi changed its melody and this had the effect of covering Keiji and Pwyll in a green aura. 

 

Yoshinori grimaced as Eligor this time charged towards Janna, this time dropping its reins and holding its spear in both hands. “Shit, shit, shit, help!” Janna yelled. She didn’t have Hoichi stop but they both retreated as much as they could against a horse. However, suddenly Pwyll flared with a bright, pink aura. Enough to make its cloak flail about as if being pushed by flailing wind and that Eligor’s persona with just its legs readjusted its charge to turn away from Janna and head for Keiji and Pwyll. Airgetlam moved and lashed out with its fist, catching Eligor in the head and knocking it off its horse outright. “Got it!” Haru cried out “Quick, Attack it while it’s down!”. Airgetlam followed the punch up with a downward slash onto Eligor. Hoichi with a harsh note sent a bolt of lightning into Eligors helmet which Pwyll opted to hold a hand out and with a pulse of power make Eligors helm glow pink, a sign that it was using Psi to damage Eligors mind.  

 

“Dammit!” Yoshinori shouted with slight pain in his voice, stumbling back “How dare you harm me!?”. Eligor responded by jumping to its feet and spinning around, lashing out with its spear at Airgetlam, whom it stood a full foot in height over. Airgetlam defended with its sword, though barely and was still sent sliding backwards from the force of the strike. Keiji reacted by having Pwyll rush forward and making several lunges and slashes in rapid succession. It’s sword was now viewable during this and it was very different, being a dagger now instead of a broadsword. Some slashes and stabs bounced off its armor, but one slash found purchase on the inside of Eligor’s elbow, making Yoshinori scream in pain. Janna had Hoichi stop playing its song and then rushed forward with Hoichi, both making a strike. It noticed their approach and spun, holding its spear up and blocking their attack. Further, it punished them for it and sent them flying away with a strong sweeping motion. Janna gasped as she impacted a tree and fell a few feet onto the floor, Hoichi vanishing as Janna lost focus from the pain of the impact. “Janna!” Haru cried out, summoning Pixie in favor of Airgetlam. 

 

“That is your weakness, Haru-chan. You care too much for your friends! Leave them if you wish to survive!” Yoshinori declared as Eligors horse came stampeding back towards its former master. However, Eligor made the reins float into his hands and with little effort remounted the steed as its course now veered towards Janna. Pixie began to fly for Janna. Keiji stared between the two before looking at Yoshinori and pointing with his rusted katana. Pwyll turned and held a hand out, Yoshinori’s head surrounding itself in an aura of pink energy that matched the energy around Pwyll’s hand. Yoshinori cried out in pain, falling to his knees grasping his head. Janna realized the situation she was in and used her axe to push herself to her feet quickly and summoned Hoichi to defend. That was when Eligor vanished. 

 

“Damn…. Damn… damn…!” Yoshinori moaned, glaring at Keiji. “Enough. We’ve-” Keiji started, but stopped gasping. He saw Yoshinori reach into his jacket slowly and painfully. He began to fear the worst as it started coming out. Enough that he yelled “Watch out, he has a gun!”. Haru gasped as Pixie reached Janna and Yoshinori revealed that Keiji was right. “I didn’t want to resort to this, but I must! Die brat!” Yoshinori screamed, aiming the gun right at Keiji who had Pwyll move in front of him, hoping to buffer between them. “No!” Janna screamed as Hoichi appeared. The gun fired but right as a bolt of lightning shot from Hoichi’s biwa. It slammed into the gun, sending an electric volt up Yoshinori’s arm and the heat melted the bullet into slag upon contact. That slag sent a drop onto Keiji, who had Pwyll vanish to avoid serious harm. He still screamed in pain as Yoshinori did too, his  arm falling to his side, limp. 

 

“Dammit…. You brat…. I’ll kill you… I’ll kill you…” Yoshinori growled, almost primitively. Haru frowned and said in a soft, sad tone as she had Pixie begin healing Janna “Just… give up father…. It’s over…. You can’t-” but stopped, gasping as Eligor appeared. “No… no… I’ll kill you… I’LL KILL YOU… I’LL KILL ALL OF YOU!” Yoshinori stated with a wild, loud yell and stood, moving his arm slowly. Eligor appeared and its eyes began to emanate a deep red glow as thorny vines pushed their way out of its back. “What the hell!?” Keiji yelled. Janna stood quickly, summoning Hoichi and making it launch a lightning bolt at Eligor. Eligor responded by having a pair of the thorn vines connect and one vine stab into the ground and the other receive the bolt, sending it harmlessly into the ground. “Dammit! Electricity doesn’t work!” Janna shouted and had Hoichi start playing a song. Pwyll flared its pink, taunting aura to draw Yoshinori and Eligors gaze away from Haru. Haru herself switched Persona back to Airgetlam. 

 

Eligor rushed right at Keiji and Pwyll, both of whom braced themselves. Hoichi began to play a melody, the power of which surrounded Keiji and Pwyll in a green aura. Airgetlam rushed for where Eligor was going to be but was too late. Eligor had arrived and it made a slash at Keiji. However he reacted almost inhumanly and avoided the slash, sidestepping it. However Eligor gave him no chance to counter and the horse jumped backwards a good 10 feet. Pwyll however did react, throwing a fireball. However, Eligor simply swatted it away with a thorny vine. “Kill them, Kill them, Kill them, Kill them! No matter what, KILL THEM ELIGOR!” Yoshinori ranted, eyes bloodshot and thorns poking out from his skin. Eligor grew more thorn vines in response and gained a blood red aura. The horse whinnied with a bloodlust that caught everyone off guard. Airgetlam rushed at Eligor and slashed at it, only to be restrained by the thorny vines. “Dammit! What the hell is going on!?” Janna yelled, confused. “The forest… the forest is driving his predatory instincts off the charts… and in turn empowering his persona!” Hayato stated “Forget the Persona, get the user!”. 

 

Janna nodded and ran forward without hesitation, axe in hand and Hoichi following. “J…. Jann…. Na!” Haru barely managed to joke out, a vine constricting Airgetlam’s throat. It moved its spear to stab Airgetlam but Pwyll flashing the pink aura that made Eligor target it caused it to pause before dropping Airgetlam and turning to Pwyll. Haru sucking in gasp after gasp of breath while Yoshinori yelled “Kill the pink!!! Kill that accursed pink!”. She opened her eyes and through narrowed eyes stared at her father with pity and regret. The thorns that came from his body now came out enough to cause a lot of bleeding. “Father…” she mumbled with pain, moving to reach for him “Please… just stop…”. She stopped as she heard the sound of a spear and dagger clashing. She looked and saw Pwyll barely fending for itself as Eligor pushed to advance past. Haru summoned Pixie with barely a hint of consideration and sent it towards Pwyll, knowing Keiji needed help. He already suffered a few cuts, one particularly nasty one on his right arm. It was right then that Janna yelled, axe raised to attack “Take this, you bastard! How dare you hurt MY friends!”. Yoshinori simply responded by turning and throwing a punch wildly. Janna screamed as she fell back, Hoichi vanishing. She had three long scratches on her face from it. Yoshinori bent to one knee, then the other as he muttered “Kill… kill… kill” and reached for Janna’s neck. Janna, in the face of this, simply gave a cocky smirk and said “Oi… bastard… left your back… wide open!” and with a flash of grey power summoned Hoichi behind him. Yoshinori had barely any time to react as Hoichi brought its biwa into the side of Yoshinori’s head, sending him flying several feet. When he landed, Eligor vanished. Pixie began healing Keiji. 

 

Janna nodded and ran forward without hesitation, axe in hand. “Janna!” Haru yelled, following. Airgetlam and Hoichi followed their users. Eligor turned to them but Pwyll flared with that pink aura that enticed Eligors attention… and Yoshinori’s as he yelled “Kill the pink!! Kill that cursed pink!”. Haru was in extreme shock at her father's condition. The thorns had become more prominent, making Yoshinori start bleeding. Haru slowed down, her feelings of terror, bewilderment, and conflict rise. Pwyll barely deflected a thrown spear from Eligor and another took a chunk of Keiji’s side, making Pwyll vanish and him scream. Haru turned, thoughtlessly summoning Pixie to fly towards Keiji. Eligor turned right as Janna reached Yoshinori and raised her axe to attack, yelling “Take this you bastard! How dare you hurt my friends!” and proceeded to bring it down. Yoshinori spun and threw the axe right out of Janna’s hands, and proceeded to punch her hard enough to send her sprawling on her back. “Bitch… stupid bitch… How dare you… how dare you! I’LL KILL YOU!” Yoshinori yelled, getting on one knee and reaching to choke Janna. Janna simply smirked and said “Hey bastard…. You forget to watch your back”. Yoshinori for the first moment expressed an emotion beyond rage and expressed confusion, saying “Huh?” right before Hoichi appeared behind him and brought its biwa right onto the back of Yoshinori’s head, an action that made the charging Eligor vanish. 

 

Haru sat next to Janna and Pixie began to use Dia on her wounds. “Heal yourself first… you got the worst of it” Janna muttered, tired. “I’m fine…. Just cuts…. That one on your face-” Haru began but was cut off by Janna saying “Is a badass scar… shows everyone I’m a punk that can take a hit”. Keiji interjected, saying as Pwyll crushed the gun in its hand “That’ll ruin your reputation. Scars are not in this season”. “And how’d the hell you know, huh Noori?” Janna asked, perhaps a bit too aggressively. Keiji responded “I have three sisters, I know what fashions in and out each season”. Janna started to grumble to herself but after a bit sighed, saying “Well I’m keeping it. After all ladies love scars”. Haru laughed at that as she had Pixie begin to heal Janna’s other wounds and the scar but leaving the scarring itself. “What do we do about him….?” Keiji asked. Haru was silent for a few moments, staring at the disintegrating thorns and said “We call the police anonymously and report this…. He gets caught, treated, and sent back to Tokyo under enough guard that not even the court can get him… and even if they could, he knows we can beat him…. So he won’t help them”. Janna stared at Haru for a few minutes before asking “You sure it’s fine, leaving it like this?”. Haru gave a small, sad laugh, saying “My father is too proud to admit children defeated him… so our secret is safe… plus no one would believe him. The ‘Noori kid and his daughter beat up an old man’ story would be laughed at”. Janna simply nodded, standing as she said “Well. Then let’s get outta here”. Keiji and Haru nodded and began to leave. Haru turned, summoning Pixie and had it fly to her father. “This time… please… just stay in Tokyo… don’t make me lose you completely too…” Haru whispered, speaking her deepest wish to the forest before turning and following her friends, leaving Pixie to heal Yoshinori. 

 

As Pixie left a new figure descended from above. A figure with brilliant blue wings, the torso of a woman, and feet of a bird. It used its wings to hover slowly to the ground, transforming as it got within 6 feet of it. Returning to her default robed state with 3-foot long ears twirling around her head as if a crown or circlet, she walked to a passed out Yoshinori. “Disappointing” Morgan stated, reaching into her robe “Even with my blessings and the forests power you failed…. To be expected I guess. You never were creative”. She pulled out a bottle of sake and pulled the cork off, saying “The cops would obey Korsaro and end investigating the forest if told… but I’d rather avoid making Korsaro be so awkward. I’ll just clean up your mess for you”. She proceeded to hold the bottle out and whispered a few latin words which made the bottle glow. She proceeded to tilt it and pour sake onto Yoshinori’s face, then move down his body, coating him completely. “I absolve you of your burden and duty, I also absolve you of your gifts and blessings. May this night and all nights related to us vanish from thine periphery and thine return to an innocent babe. Amen” Morgan chanted, saying that ‘Amen’ line as the last drop touched Yoshinori’s shoe. Eligor proceeded to rip itself from Yoshinori, standing before Morgan. It dismounted and bowed, saying “Lady Morgan, I’m deeply sorry for failing you”. Morgan sneered and said “It’s not your fault. You are a strong Persona and by rights should have bested at least one…. No. It is his fault. He is being banished. Dump him outside the police station”. Eligor nodded, standing and saying “Yes, milady. It shall be done”. Eligor then threw Yoshinori over the back of his horse, mounted it, and took off. Morgan frowned deeply, saying “Dammit. I really hoped he’d have taken at least one of them out… I’m running out of options”. “Then… mayhaps I can help?” a voice said. A fox similar to the one Morgan had seen roaming the forest emerged from the bushes, but there were two distinct differences. 

 

The first was the fact the fox stood on two legs, not four and walked perfectly fine like that. Further, the fox had hands like that of a human, just furred. Further, the fox wore clothing befitting a noble, one in the merchantry trade. “Reynard Fox” Morgan spoke “What do you want”. Reynard laughed, going ‘Shi, shi, shi’ as he did, saying “Oh Morgan, there is no need to be so hostile. I’m just here to help”. Morgan scoffed, saying “Please. Everyone in the court knows you’re in it for yourself. Even our god and king knows. He only puts up with you because your schemes are amusing, befitting the Court Jester”. Reynard laughed a bit more, saying “Ah, perhaps… but I promise on my nature as a fox, make me not one should I lie, that I am actually here to offer advice”. Morgan was silent for a few moments as Reynard continued “Haru and her friends are quite strong and smart enough to prevent you from using the police…. So what if you didn’t?”. Morgan looked at him, asking “Are you suggesting I actually put a hit out on a 15-year old girl?”. Reynard shook his head “No, no…. But we doo-” but was stopped, yipping as a bolt of magic slammed into the tree next to him. “Leave. I will not entertain such notions. I refuse to debase myself by associating with criminals in order to deal with children that I never even planned on killing” Morgan stated. Reynard merely shrugged, saying “I tried to help… good luck, Morgan. It’d be a real shame to lose the Court Sorceress” as he left. “Tsk” Morgan grumbled “Even I’m not so low as to kill kids, Reynard…. You shameless fox”. She still remembered what Reynard did to his first charge all those years ago. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 7, in just two days! I was going to go longer but decided it ended where it ended naturally and the rest was better left to Chapter 8. With that said, I've been busy the past two days and so wasn't really able to write this. Further, I threw out the original chapter. It involved the second new character attacking Haru at her home and Haru confessing to Hana... but I realized the latter part was incredibly forced and eventually just decided to not go that route quite yet. 
> 
> Anyway, i'll see you all on Chapter 8!


	9. Chapter 8: Calm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a harrowing fight in the forest against Haru's father, who had become a Persona user, the group spends a couple of days to recover. During that time, they kindle new bonds and consider how things are going. Eventually, Haru decides to go back to the forest. Its time to continue what they started.

**_Chapter 8_ **

_ Calm _

  
  


Haru heard about it the next morning from Hana. He was up and watching the news, leaving his own plate of breakfast to grow cold. “What’s wrong?” Haru asked, curious. She suspected it was about Yoshinori but she knew she had to pretend to be unaware. “Your father…” Hana started but stopped himself. He then sighed and said “I wasn’t going to tell you but… he was found last night”. Haru, rather than fake surprise, simply replied with a “Huh…. where?”. Hana was noticably shocked by the lack of reaction and after a few fumbles at speaking said “He was in front of the police station…. Covered in holes. None deep enough to be life-threatening but he had to be taken to the hospital immediately apparently”. Haru frowned visibly and sighed, saying “I see….” and began to eat. After a dozen minutes of silence, Hana asked “Haru…. Are you okay?”. Haru finished the meal before her, saying “I… don’t know…. I think I… expected this to happen…. But I truly am unsure of how to feel”. Hana stared for a few minutes longer before saying “Well… you should get to school. I’ll use my connections with the local PD to make heads or tails of his situation…. Hopefully, he didn’t try anything stupid while he was here”. Haru nodded, gathering her things and starting to leave. After putting her shoes on, she turned to Hana who was heading to the kitchen with his plate and said “Hana… thank you. Truly” and with that left. 

 

Keiji himself heard the news. He was making breakfast when he heard. He made no visible reaction but he was worried. He was certain they’d left him in the forest. For Yoshinori to appear in front of the police station meant a third party intervened… meaning they’d been watched during their fight. He was worried how much the third party knew. However these concerns were beneath even one more concern; Why was no one concerned about Yoshinori being in Hanayosei? They talked about the event itself but none of the surrounding points. It was weird. He underestimated the reach of the court and now felt a small amount of fear. He only felt so little because he was certain that the court considered them nuisances at best. However, he knew things would get more and more dangerous the more serious things got. He finished making breakfast and began to serve it as his family members began to come in one after another. “Keiji” his grandfather said “Don’t forget to serve your older sister”. Keiji stopped and looked. There she sat, his older sister. “Father, forgive him he didn’t know. I failed to inform him that my daughter and her husband were visiting” his father stated. “Ah…. then Keiji, is there enough?” his grandfather asked. His sister yawned as he answered “Yes… I assume Amayiro-san is here too?”. His father shook his head, saying “No… Bryant-san won’t be by until later”. He nodded and prepared his sister’s breakfast too. It was rare he saw her anymore, since she was married to Bryant Amayiro, mayor of Hanayosei and completely supported him. 

 

Haru sat in the public library after school. She was studying about medicine as she realized relying on Persona for healing was quickly becoming burdensome. It wasn’t that it wasn’t effective, it was that Pixie could only heal one at a time and took time depending on the severity. Medicine could act faster, and while it wouldn’t be as effective it was another set of hands, maybe more. As she studied she heard someone clear their throat nearby. She looked to her left, past the small stack of books nearby and saw a young adult with glasses on waiting. He wore a white button-up shirt with blue jeans and had a laptop bag hanging from over his shoulder to his right side. “Excuse me miss, but might I borrow a book from this pile? I need it to study” he asked. She nodded, saying “Sure… I’m just studying out of personal interest…”. The young man raised an eyebrow, asking “Personal interest?”. She nodded, saying “Yes… ummm…. My friends keep getting into fights and getting injured… and I wanted to see if I could make-” but was stopped as the young man sighed and said “Stop. If you don’t know what you’re doing, don’t. Informing yourself is fine, but seeking to actually make medicine from scratch out is dangerous…. Rely on the professionals”. Haru stared and asked “Are you one such individual?”. The man looked nervous, answering “N-no. I know a guy but no… I can guide you if you wish”. Haru smiled, nodding and saying “Please lead the way”. The man sighed, saying “Let me check this book out first” and carefully retrieved the third book in the pile, moving to the desk that handled checkouts. 

 

They left the library and took a train into a condensed part of the city called Konpakutona-Roji. It was a mismash of stores, cafes, bars, apartments and even homes all condensed into a small area. Most of it couldn’t be traversed by cars, trains, or even bikes. It had to be traveled by foot. The man led her deep into the district and eventually to a small shop at the end of an alleyway. A small neon sign shone above it, with the name “Doctor Backstreet’s Clinic” and had a small surgical mask as the symbol of the clinic. “In here” the man said “Doctor Backstreet can help your friends”. She nodded and entered. There were a few lights on but no one inside. She began to suspect the worse, until the door closed and the man said “With privacy I can be honest. I own this place and I can help”. Haru stared for a few moments before asking “Why?”. “I need the money… allow me to explain. I’m a college student studying to become a doctor. I was doing fine when my parents died. A distant relative used his lawyer to steal the inheritence I was supposed to get and now I have to finish college on my own… so to do that, I’ve owned my own clinic to pay for that” the man explained “I dreamed of being a doctor since I was a kid and I’m so, so close. I won’t let it slip away just because I’ve faced a setback. I must succeed”. Haru processed this information and after a few minutes asked “Your medicine… how confident are you that it’s safe?”. The man turned, smiled and said “Very. I’ve been the top of my class all years of my life expect the past semester, though that was due to grief over my losses. Would you like a sample? If that’s what it takes to convince you, I can give you a dose of something”. Haru responded with “Alright… what do you recommend?”. The young man motioned for her to follow and led her into his lab. Inside he pulled out a small vial and said “Have someone ingest this. As long as its not a gaping, bleeding crater or worse, it can stitch it together from what my human trials suggest… it might do more but I’m not brave enough to try”. Haru accepted the vial, and stared at it. She then nodded and said “Alright… I’ll trust you. You seem genuine”. The man smiled, happy and said “Thank you. My name is Fugo Hatori”. Haru said “I am Haru Matsuhada. Nice to meet you, Hatori-san” with a smile. 

 

Keiji had a different day. He had been pulled aside during lunch by Yuuta who wanted to talk to him. He stood near Yuuta who looked down on the schoolyard from behind a fence. “Keiji… did you recently hear the news?” Yuuta asked. “Yeah… Yoshinori was found in front of the police station severely injured. Not in critical condition but…” Keiji answered, trailing off. Yuuta was silent for a few moments before saying “Did you notice that the media isn’t asking any questions?”. Keiji was silent but said “They are… but they’re softballing them… no. Intentionally asking the minimum amount and attempting to answer them themselves…. Without incriminating Yoshinori”. Yuuta turned to him and said “Keiji…… I hate to suspect anything but I need to ask. Did the Noori family help with the cover-up?”. Keiji was silent, before looking away saying “I’d like to say no…. But…….. My grandfather is…. Remember when I told you about how that job panned out? An expression he had bothered me… and now… I get why”. Yuuta was silent so Keiji continued, saying “I’m certain now Janna was supposed to change in a different way…. Because this morning? Bryant visited. Or at least he’s supposed to”. Yuuta was still silent before sighing, asking “Keiji…. Was this town always this bad?”. Keiji hung his head, saying “I…. I never noticed but… I want to believe it wasn’t”. Yuuta was about to speak as Keiji continued “That said… if it is… I can’t just turn away. I won’t turn away”. Yuuta smiled slightly and said “Keiji…. Heh…. like you said before. You can’t turn away from evil… and this is so blatant”. Keiji felt his bond deepen with Yuuta and said “Yuuta… don’t investigate this. I know you want to, but you know how influential my family is…. Let me do this”. Yuuta nodded, saying “Alright. Just… be careful, alright?”. Keiji nodded, saying “I promise”. 

 

After school, Keiji was going to go home but say Janna and walked over. “Hey” he greeted. Janna turned, asking “Hey Keiji. How ya do’in?”. “Good” Keiji answered “I was just wondering if you had time to hang out. Haru is nowhere to be found”. Janna laughed and asked “What, you stalk’in her now?”. Keiji gave her a puzzled gaze and answered “No…. it’s just nice to talk to her. We do have similar powers”. Janna stared for a few moments before sighing and saying “Right, right…”. Keiji stared at Janna before asking “Something… wrong?”. Janna shook her head, saying “No, no… just… I dunno. I guess…. Honestly? I’m a bit more bothered about my powers than I thought… I want to be stronger, but I’m not making much progress…”. Keiji hesitated in answering, but finally did, saying “Maybe your heart is weak”. Janna glared at him, asking in a low, aggressive tone “What?”. “Persona are tied directly to our minds, our hearts right? Then it stands to reason that if its weak, so is the user” Keiji started but sighed, saying “That said, I’ve been feeling in the same boat… we barely won. Again”. Janna looked away, silent for several minutes before saying “Keiji… you’re an alright guy”. Keiji smiled and said “Thanks…. I try. Still… how do we solve this?”. Janna laughed and said “Our hearts are weak right? Then they need to get stronger. So… let’s think of ways to get stronger hearts”. Keiji laughed and said “Alright Kintori-san. I will”. 

 

As Haru arrived home, Hana was waiting. He looked and said “You’re home”, standing from the table. Haru nodded, removing her shoes and walking inside. Hana offered some papers and she accepted, asking “What’s this…?” and looked them over. “The police report. You… I need you to be aware” Hana said, his voice having a serious tone. She read it over and gasped. “He… he’s… serious…?” she muttered “But… but why…?”. Hana moved and brought plates in from the kitchen and set them on the table. The report made two things clear. One, whatever injuries he had gotten were unnatural and to be kept secret from the public. Two, that Yoshinori was adamant about killing his daughter. So much so, that the police had no choice but to relocate Yoshinori to a private clinic and keep him under lock and key. Hana simply sighed and said “I’m sorry Haru…. But it seems… this incident has made your father lose whatever vestiges of humanity he had left. That’s not all that concerns me though…. My contacts flat out told me to not expect much from trial about this”. Haru looked at Hana, asking “What…?” to which Hana responded “My contact said that the police are already disposing of evidence, like his gun. It was found on him and the police tossed it into the sewers, claiming it was ‘inadmissible’. The prosecutions office doesn’t care either”. Haru finally sat down, feeling overwhelmed. “I’m sorry to drop this on you but… I promised to figure it out and tell you, but now there are more questions…. And I felt obligated to try to uphold my promise” Hana stated, standing and bowing. She waved her hand, saying “No, no Tsurugi-san, I’m sorry for causing-” but was stopped as Hana said “You aren’t causing trouble… I suspected this might happen when I took you in. I was prepared… I didn’t expect this… mystery. Further, I’m happy to do this. So there’s nothing to apologize for”. Haru stopped, staring at Hana for several minutes in silence. Hana smiled warmly and said “Also… please. Call me Hana. I am your guardian now. We should be more family-like”. Haru smiled, almost feeling like she was going to cry, and said “Yes…. Hana-san. We should…. In that case, call me Haru”. With that, they had dinner together. 

 

Keiji finished ascending the steps to the shrine, and saw his father there. He bowed, saying “Hello Oto-san”. His father bowed in return and said “I’m glad you’ve returned Keiji-chan. I wanted to speak to you before you got asked by your grandfather”. Keiji nodded and his father continued “He wants to know how Haru is receiving the news of her father… and while I’m curious myself, I don’t see how its relevant to us at all. Why would a girl like her matter to us?”. Keiji nodded, saying “I see….”. His father looked right at Keiji, saying “I’m talking to you about this because I know you also have held reservations regarding your grandfather. I have been too…. This is unprompted. Out of the blue. I… want you to be honest with me. Do you have any idea why he cares?”. Keiji stared at him, responding “I don’t have any evidence…. But my instincts are telling me that he’s up to something. When I told him that Janna had merely befriended Haru and that likely is the reason for the drastic change? He seemed… displeased. He hid it with relief but I noticed… and hearing this… my instincts tell me to be weary”. His father nodded, saying “I see… good to hear we both feel the same thing”. He felt a warm feeling in his chest as his father continued, saying “Keiji. Go ahead and answer him but be careful. I don’t know how much we can trust him…. This whole thing is becoming strange. First Bryant and now grandfather…. What’s going on?”. Keiji responded “I don’t know… but if he’s causing paranormal problems, we’ll handle it. That’s… the Noori family duty isn’t it?”. His father nodded, smiling as he said “Absolutely. Now… let’s get inside and have dinner”. With that, they both walked around the shrine to the family home. 

 

Haru went to bed early. She wanted to go on the chat client and talk to the others but found it empty. She decided to simply leave a message. ‘I think we should go back to the forest soon. I feel like we’re ready’ she typed and sent to the chatroom. It appeared and she shut her computer down. Afterwards she moved to go to bed but felt her key glow. She pulled it out and before her was the door. Curious, she moved and touched the door with her key and it opened on its own. Stepping inside, she found herself at the campsite in the forest. This time, it was in an even more overgrown area. Thorny vines surrounded the campsite, sprouting blue roses. Igor sat on a chair shaped log and had a desk before him, made out of multiple logs. Helena stood next to him, holding a tome under her arm. Igor smiled and said “Ah… welcome back, Matsuhada-san. I see you came of your own volition”. “I suppose so… the door suddenly appeared in my room” Haru responded. “Ahhhh” Igor said “Interesting… a first”. Haru raised an eyebrow, sitting in a chair on the other side of the fire as Helena said “The doors to the velvet room do appear in odd places, but usually out in town… for it to be in your room, out of nowhere, is unusual. It may be that you desire your visits to be private, or when you need them”. Haru thought about it, nodding and saying “I think… that is the case”. Helena smiled and said “I see… truly a unique guest”. Igor stayed silent, interested in the conversation but more importantly the quickly forming bond. “That tome you have” Haru asked “What is that?”. Helena smiled and said “This, dear, is the sea of your soul. All the Persona you have access or will have access to are recorded here. I wish I could show you as there are some interesting entries, but I cannot. It is improper for an attendent to reveal such things to their guest”. Haru smiled and said “I think… I rather be surprised” feeling the all familiar warmth of a forming bond. Haru looked at Igor, asking “By the way…. I was wondering… can I do some fusion?”. Igor nodded, saying “Of course. I should inform you that one of your social links has empowered your heart enough to handle Triangle Fusion. So you may now fuse three persona, if you have the strength for it”. Haru smiled and said “Alright… let’s go over my options then shall we?”. 

 

Keiji opened his eyes and found himself staring at Igor and Helena. “Welcome back” Igor stated “It is time again for a new ordeal”. Keiji nodded, saying “I see… who is it?”. Igor stated bluntly “A girl. Her name is Eika Suzume”. Keiji nodded, saying “Understood. I will make sure this girl does not get her shadow devoured…. And that her Persona is returned” however Igor shook his head and replied “No… that is not what is at stake. She still has her persona…. She also has her shadow”. Igor stopped there however, noticing that Keiji had already pieced together what he was implying. It was confirmed when Keiji spoke after a few moments of silence, saying “They plan to take both since she’s an outsider… figuring no one will miss her… and if they do, they can fix that too”. Igor nodded, his grin growing a bit “Indeed… my how clever of you. I barely provided any information…”. “It wasn’t that hard” Keiji said “I know the woman myself. She works for a maid company and is known to be particularly strict. She also wants to leave and has been very vocal…. Particularly to my grandfather, to his dismay”. Igor chuckled and said “I see, I see…. She complains and yet does nothing?”. Keiji shook his head, saying “Not entirely. She doesn’t own anything to reasonably leave with. No car and most importantly, no savings. She’s trying to save money but with her attitude….” and Igor finished saying “She gets few returning clients…. Fascinating that humans like that exist. Good-hearted but such makes their life and dreams difficult to attain”. 

 

Keiji felt a familiar warmth as he nodded in agreement, which made Igor’s grin widen even more. “My, my…. I’ve only felt this bond once before. Truly, you are a remarkable guest. To think you’d form a bond even with me”. Keiji chuckled and replied “Well remember… they do have to be genuine. I’m guessing our bond will be built upon common interest”. Igor nodded in agreement “Then, before your time of waking, anything we can do for you?”. Keiji thought about it before saying “Actually… can we change Pwyll’s arcana? Let’s take the new one for a spin”. Igor smiled, saying “Aeon it is then”. With a flash of brilliant light, Pwyll changed shape before his eyes. The helm vanished completely, revealing eyes with space itself in them and long, flowing, auburn hair. “Incredible… the Ace’s persona truly is unique. If I’m honest, this is my first time having a guest with such a power”. Keiji looked at him with a puzzled look, asking “Really?”. Igor nodded, saying “I know much of this place and Persona… but some things I’ve never experienced. One power, the Universe, I had never seen before a particular guest… and there is another power, the Recorder, whom I’ve yet to witness. I do not know if I ever will, but that makes it all the more worthwhile”. Keiji smiled and replied “That… is a good way to look at it”. 

 

The next day, Haru woke up early to check the chat client. Keiji and Janna had both responded, saying they should talk about it later on the roof of the school. After that, she had breakfast and left for school. When the lunch period arrived, Janna and Keiji were waiting for her on the roof, with a full spread waiting. “Wow!” Haru exclaimed “What is all this?”. Keiji smirked and said “Thank my sister. She suggested the idea… and made the food far before suggesting it. Then you wanted to talk about going back so it all just fell into place naturally”. Haru sat down and began to get food for herself since the other two had already begun. “So… you wanna try your hand again eh?” Janna stated. Haru nodded, saying “Yes… it would seem my heart has strengthened enough to handle stronger persona… like this one” and summoned her new persona. It was a newt-like lizard surrounded by an aura of fire. The fire itself seemed to have no physical presence though, as the fire itself wasn’t burning Haru’s clothes as it settled on her shoulder. “It’s called Salamander” Haru stated. “Nice” Janna said, smiling “That’s a pretty cu- I mean badass persona… what’s it do?”. “Uses fire magic very well…. Though with what I used to make it, it’s pretty well rounded” Haru replied “It can use Tarukaja and Dia… oh and it can cover its Ice weakness with Ice Wall”. “That sounds useful” Keiji said, summoning his own Pwyll. It still had the same appearance “I changed Pwyll to a new arcana myself. It’s in Aeon now… probably will change it. All it gives me at the moment is an improvement to some element called ‘Almighty’... which I lack”. Janna nodded, saying “Probably a powerful arcana down the line, but right now its useless… still…. How do you gain access to new arcana?”. “Bonds” Keiji stated “I was worried about them becoming frivilous and nothing more than a power grab at first, but a few convinced me that they must be genuine… likely the same way with Haru”. 

 

Haru nodded, hesitantly and watching Janna as she said “Yes… I find the more I get closer to and trust Hana-san, the more the arcana grows… and its not every interaction that it does”. Janna looked at Haru, noticing her hesitation and fear. She gave a warm smile and said “Don’t worry Haru, I ain’t mad. I could tell you were genuine with me, and I ain’t one to be taken for a sucker”. Haru smiled and said “I’m glad”. “Still. That’s a cool persona. Wish I could say I improved. Sadly, I can’t... “ Janna said, sadness creeping into her tone. Haru said “But… you aren’t weak Janna”. Janna looked at her as Haru continued “If it weren’t for you going for Yoshinori yesterday, I’m certain we would’ve died there and then”. Keiji nodded, saying “Yeah… I had used taunt and that thing was gunning for me…. Sure I could’ve held him off, but not long enough for Haru to recover… you quite literally saved the day”. Janna’s face grew a bit red as she looked away, saying “Yeah well… I wasn’t seekin’ validation! I know I’m badass! Hmph!”. Both Haru and Keiji laughed. After a few minutes the laughter died down and Keiji’s face became serious as he said “I did get news. We’ve got a problem. The court is about to move again. They’re targeting a maid this time”. Haru and Janna became serious as well, nodding. “Then we gotta beat the dude that’s gonna do it’s ass before they do, right?” Janna stated. Haru nodded, saying “Yes… When is it happening?”. “Two weeks from today. Right before finals in other words” Keiji said “There’s a bit more to it though. Eiko Suzume is who they are targeting and Eiko still has her Persona…. She’s from out of town”. Janna and Haru were silent, both not getting it at first. Janna put the pieces together first however, saying “Those bastards! They think they can make some out-of-towner disappear!”. Haru gasped as Keiji nodded. “Exactly… why we need to grow even stronger, discover the court member targeting Eiko, and take them out before finals begin… Janna, mind if we go into the forest today to train?”. Janna nodded and said “No problem mate”. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end of chapter 8 is here and so I move onto chapter 9. I hope you all enjoy it!. If you have questions or comments, do feel free to leave them. As long as it doesn't spoil the story, i'll answer. heck, even if it does I'll give an answer... even if it is cryptic.


	10. Chapter 9: Training

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Haru and her friends enter the forest to both train and advance their goal of defeating Bean Nighe, head maid of the Court of the Unseen Fairy God. Elsewhere, a boy continues his research on the forest, and takes an interest in Haru and her friends.

**_Chapter 9_ **

_ Training _

  
  


Hayato was waiting for them at the meeting spot, the concert stage. He nodded to them as they entered and said “Hey. Good to see you here… there’s a lot of activity. I think they’re going for someone”. Keiji nodded, saying “Eiko Suzume. A maid in town”. “A maid huh?” Hayato pondered, saying after a few moments of thought “Bean. She’s the only one that gives a damn about gaining Persona from maids. The rest think it's a waste… She's also the one with the most troublesome minions. She gives them a persona, whatever she can get the high court to approve”. “So our first target is also our first problem… funny how fate works” Haru noted. Janna nodded, saying “Yeah. So lets get training. We have two weeks to find her ‘den’ and lay an ambush”. Hayato nodded, saying “Understood. Let’s get going” and hopped off the table he was on and began to take point as the group gathered their weapons and headed into the forest. 

 

This time, the pathway becomes clearer. More visible. Enough that Hayato sensed patrols far before they came. Eventually, Hayato said “I sense another group of Shadows… they aren’t that powerful though. About on par with that one that caused us to retreat before”. Haru looked at the other two, who nodded to her, before saying “Let us wait until they get closer”. Hayato nodded and they waited. Before long, the shadows came into view. There were two Matsuo’s and two other shadows they’d never seen before. They looked elfin in nature, but with light blue skin and hindu-like clothing. Water floated around them as though waiting for commands. Haru waited on one side while Keiji and Janna waited on the other. Once the Matsuo got close, Haru summoned Salamander and had it leap from the bushes. It screeched and as it did part of its aura became real, and through Haru’s will that part leaped towards a Matsuo like a small fireball. Keiji right after this summoned Pwyll, who had changed from the Aeon Arcana to the Chariot Arcana. Now, Pwyll had no helmet and pure white eyes, his hair was in a ponytail and he wielded a second broadsword. Pwyll had one sword sheathed and used this free hand to fire a fireball at the one that was distracted. Both screamed in pain, falling to the ground. Janna summoned Hoichi and had it rush at one of the elfin maids, biwa raised to attack. The maids responded by trying to retreat immediately. 

 

Salamander immediately changed its fire from red to blue, signifying its use of Ice Wall. A good move, as one of the elfin maids, after making some distance, turned to the salamander, turned some of the water droplets into ice balls and flung one of them at Salamander. The ice made it through the fire, slamming into Salamanders side and sending it flying into the bushes. Haru however only felt a little pain. If Ice Wall had not been used, her weakness would have been struck and the pain would have been enough to knock the wind out of her. Hoichi changed targets, turning and smacking its biwa into the face of the attacking elven maiden, knocking them into the forest. Hoichi moved to start playing when an ice chunk slammed into its face, knocking it to the ground. Keiji leaped out of the bushes and rushed one of the Matsuo’s that was starting to get up while Pwyll unsheathed its other sword and rushed to help Hoichi. Haru jumped out of the bushes, stabbing at one of the Matsuo’s. Janna was heading towards the elfin maids. 

 

The Matsuo had recovered by now. Despite their wounds from the fire and weapons, they were not down. One dipped its hand into its sake, turning it into a mist and flooding the forest with it while the other turned, its eyes glowing pink and Haru’s head glowing pink. Haru groaned in pain, feeling the effect of Psi, which was causing her head pain. Salamander retaliated by launching more fire into the offending Matsuo’s face, making it cease its attack and retreat. Keiji swung at the Matsuo, which dodged, and attempted another slice that was blocked by its sake dish. Janna meanwhile had Hoichi strike a biwa chord and send lightning at the maid that attacked and moved to smash the ice ball thrown at Hoichi from the other maid. “Come out you coward!” Janna yelled “Or are ya chicken!?”. The other maid sent another ice chunk at Hoichi that was dodged. 

 

Haru, free from Psi, moved and stabbed at the Matsuo’s neck. However, it moved and instead was stabbed in the cheek. Salamander sent another fireball at one, this time the one Keiji was fighting. It fell to a knee, giving Keiji an opening, which he used to stab it in the neck. It groaned and turned into black mist, vanishing completely. The other matsuo turned and began to look worried. Haru kept her spear pointed as she said “Surrender… I’ll spare you if you do”. The Matsuo stared at her, very worried if she was being honest or not. “How… how do I know you’re being honest…?” it asked hesitantly. Haru stared for a few moments before pulling the spear away and saying “This is how. I won’t hold you at gunpoint to get it. After all…. You attack me and you’ll be outnumbered… but if you ran or became my Persona, you’d be perfectly fine, right?”. Matsuo thought about it and nodded, saying “Okay, okay… I getcha…. Pretty laid back response though”. Haru smiled and said “Well… I’d think a Matsuo could appreciate such an honest, laid-back answer”. Matsuo smiled as it turned into a small ball of light and entered Haru. Both turned and watched Janna as Hoichi sent a bolt of lightning again at one of the maids, scattering it to shadows, while Janna kept smashing ice balls being flung at her from the woods. 

 

Hoichi turned and started to play a song. A ‘thud’ was heard and Janna went into the woods for a few moments, dragging a sleeping maid out. Hoichi stopped as Haru approached. The maid awoke shortly after and looked ready to run when she noticed she was surrounded. “Wait!” Haru pleaded “We just want to talk!”. The maid stopped and turned, looking very untrusting. “Why should I believe that…?”. “Cause you don’t gotta choice…?” Janna offered. Haru replied “No… but because… I was hoping you would become my Persona too”. The maid glanced at Haru, narrowed her eyes, then said “Ah… I see… Matsuo has become part of you….”. Haru nodded, saying “Yes… and you can too. Will you though?”. The maid hesitated, thinking about it before nodding, saying “Fine. I haven’t a choice. I am Apsaras, Water Nymph of Gandharva. I am pleased to be of your entourage” with a bow. She became a ball of light and entered Haru. 

 

“That went well” Keiji noted as he recalled Pwyll “We should test our strength against one of the patrols”. Hayato looked at him as if he was crazy, asking “Are you sure? You do realize how strong they are right?”. Janna replied “If we keep runnin’ cause things look tough, we ain’t ever gonna be strong…. So let us know when a patrols coming that's within our paygrade… or a bit above”. Hayato looked at them all, then sighed and sniffed the air. He moved forward a bit and said “No luck…. Let's move on” and continued down the path. They followed. They avoided a few more patrols, these ones being very strong. It wasn’t for another hour that Hayato would jump into the bushes, a silent signal that their targets had arrived. 

 

The shadows came into view quickly. An angel flew towards them, armored with iron armor from the medieval era and wielding a broadsword. Airgetlams flanked the angels' sides. “Halt, men!” the angel shouted, having a very masculine voice but a very feminine appearance.  It flew a few feet forward, leaving a dozen meters between them and it. “Who are you lot? Why are you on this path?” it demanded. “Heh…. names Janna. That’s Miko, and she’s Boss. Got a problem with us go’in this way?” Janna stated, taking a few steps forward. “Yes! If you continue, you will intrude upon the den of Bean Nighe, Head Maid of the Unseen Fairy God's court! Turn back at once, and your lives will be spared!” the angel cried. Keiji smiled and said “Really? That’s helpful. Thanks angel, now we know where our target is”. “Target?” one of the Airgetlams said, confused “Wait, do you mean to attack Bean Nighe!? Blasphemy!!!”. “Men, attack these invaders, these cretins, and teach them the might of the court!” the angel cried and began to fly at them. Haru, Keiji, and Janna summoned their persona in response. 

 

Haru had summoned Salamander and had it launch a fireball right at the angel. The angel however barreled right through, raising its sword to attack. Shocked, Haru recalled Salamander and raised her spear defensively. Thankfully, Pwyll was summoned and it reacted by kneeing the angel in the face, moving quickly. Hoichi slammed the angel into the ground with its biwa, the angel flying at it thanks to Pwyll’s knee. “Heathens! You will be purged!” the angel screamed, pulling itself to a knee. The Airgetlams charged at them. Keiji turned and had Pwyll rush at them, swords ready. As it approached it began to make precise, lightning quick slashes and stabs. “Argh!” the Airgetlam yelled, stopping in their track to deal with Pwyll. Pwyll turned, ready to defend itself. Hoichi flew above and began to play a tune, aiming to lull the angel to sleep. The angel struggled, but did, falling prone completely. The Airgetlam that wasn’t attacked moved to attack Pwyll, but Pwyll dodged gracefully, ready to continue fighting. 

 

Haru changed from Salamander and switched to Apsaras, using Apsaras to send small ice balls at the Airgetlams. The ice balls dented the armor from the velocity that Apsaras sent them flying. “Damn wench! Stop interfering,” One yelled, aiming its arm. Haru knew what was coming and recalled Apsaras and prepared herself as its silver arm went flying. “Haru!” Janna cried, seeing the fist flying through the air at high speeds. Haru tried to deflect it with her spear and got a fist in her guts for her effort, sending her flying back several feet. “That’ll teach you to doubt the might of my silver arm and the court!” the Airgetlam cried. It cried out in pain after, Pwyll giving it a deep cut in the back. Keiji stopped halfway to the  Airgetlams as the second one began to stand. Further he could hear the angel beginning to stir, especially since Haru and Janna attacked it with their weapons repeatedly. 

 

“Da…. Dammit…. Heathens…” the angel yawned out, standing and taking off into the air. “Hoichi!” Janna yelled, readying her axe. Hoichi stopped play and raised its biwa to attack, the two ready to unleash a combo attack. Unfortunately, the angel wasn’t having any of that. “Makouha” it mumbled, flapping its wings intensely, sending a flurry of condensed light down at them. Like small arrows or missiles the light flew. Haru and Janna screamed as the light slammed into them, though it didn’t pierce. Hoichi vanished, Janna having lost concentration. “Haru! Janna!” Keiji cried, rushing to help them, Pwyll obeying its masters heart rather than his will, which was to protect his friends over defeating the two Airgetlam. The angel turned, still waking up and flapped his wing again, saying “Makouha” and sending another flurry of light. Keiji was prepared this time and ducked into the bushes, though yelled as Pwyll got battered backwards. “Heathens… you have dared to attack members of the court, even if mere servants… your life will be payment for your crime…” the angel said tiredly. 

 

Haru opened her eyes and flinched. She was in a lot of pain. She summoned Apsaras and had it begin to use Dia on her. When she looked up, she saw Angel staring down at her. “Healing yourself, heathen? How disgraceful… I shall punish you” it said, continuing to stare “Heal yourself so I may show the gap between us”. She continued to heal herself as she looked over at Janna. Janna was still alive, if out cold. She looked at Keiji and saw him busy with the Airgetlam. That left her with the angel…. Alone. She recalled Apsaras and switched to Airgetlam, then summoned him. “You are ready. Prepare for punishment, heathen!” the angel cried, readying its wings. Airgetlam aimed its silver hand and fired it! It hit the angel right in his head, making him fall to the ground, launching his Makouha into the sky as well! “Airgetlam! Attack!” Haru yelled, rushing to stab the angel. She and Airgetlam rained blows onto the downed angel, and it cried “Heathens! How dare you escape punishment!”. It pulled itself to its feet as Haru had Airgetlam use Pulinpa, to which Airgetlam used its hand to flash light in its eyes in a strobe-like fashion, confusing the poor angel. It was then Janna acted, suddenly sinking her axe into the point between when the wings connected to its back. The angel cried out and Hoichi appeared, firing a bolt of lightning to its left wing. “Try flying now, ya chicken!” Janna yelled. Keiji and Pwyll meanwhile were dealing with the Airgetlam pair. It was a tough fight as both were hardy enough to weather most of Pwylls blow… but not enough to negate his damage. Further, Pwyll as the Chariot was fast enough to avoid most of their strikes. As such, it was a war of attrition with the caveat of them striking Pwyll may not end the match. 

 

The angel glared at Haru and said “Heathens… bigots… how dare you… stand against your king's court!?” and stood fully, whipping around and lashing out with his sword. Janna ducked and Hoichi flew in, smashing its biwa into the face of the angel, sending it flying at Haru. Haru had Airgetlam slash upwards, cutting into the angel and sending it flying. “Hoichi! Send that feathered freak out with a bang!” Janna yelled. Hoichi complied, playing a tune and sending a bolt of lightning right into it, dispersing it into shadows. Pwyll meanwhile stabbed one of the Airgetlams, which finally caused it to melt into shadows. The other slashed at Pwyll, who deflected it with his other sword. Pwyll then rushed and made slash after slash, cutting the shadow to ribbons, leaving only black mist behind, which even that vanished. 

 

“Holy moly… we did it!” Janna cried out “We fought a patrol!”. Hayato came out of the bushes, amazed. “Yes… you actually fought them off… you have grown stronger”. Keiji walked over, recalling Pwyll and saying “Yep… definitely stronger. Pwyll’s way faster than he was when we fought that last patrol… stronger too, even in his Fool state”. Hayato looked at Keiji, asking “Fool…?”. Keiji nodded and reiterated the explanation on the powers of the Ace. Hayato nodded, saying “Well… if it helps, it helps… and it does. You have a veritable lockbox of options. And with Haru’s ability to utilize multiple persona, many situations are covered… we might be able to take Bean”. Haru nodded, saying “Then let’s continue. It’s almost dark and we’ve yet to come across her ‘den’. If we don’t, then we’ll have to do this again another day”. Hayato nodded and continued to lead them deeper in. 

 

Eventually, they found it. Bean Nighe’s den. It was another hour and a bit of a winding path. Hayato followed the scent of soap that his nose was picking up on. As expected, the den was massive. Not a clearing but the hanging clothes and bathtubs strewn about were obvious indicators of where they were. Further, hanging from trees were vacuum cleaners and buckets. Mops stuck out of certain trees, acting as levers. “This is Bean Nighe’s den alright…” Keiji stated “This environment is unmistakable”. Haru nodded, saying “Hayato… is she here?”. Hayato shook his head, saying “Can’t tell… never smelled her before… but there are some strong shadows around… though thankfully, none as strong as that angel”. “Then we can handle it… lets go” Janna said, walking forward. Haru and Keiji followed, Hayato rushing to take point. Eventually he suddenly whispered loudly “A group of shadows are approaching. Do we hide or fight?”. “Fight a course” Janna stated, readying her axe “If they aren’t as strong as that angel, then there’s noth’in ta worry about!”. 

 

The group readied their persona and hid in the bushes. Approaching were a pair of Matsuo’s flanked this time by a pair of weird creatures. Like blue men made of cylindrical sausages. One Matsuo spoke, asking the other “Do the Mokoi really need to be with us?”. The other answered “Yes… Bean was very clear that they specialize in cleaning graveyards…. Our job is to place proper tribute to the souls and keep them from seeking vengeance for desecrated graves”. Haru waited until one of the Matsuo was near before having Salamander fly above the bushes and send a fireball down onto a Matsuo. She then leapt from the bushes and stabbed the Matsuo while it was down. Hoichi came out and sent a bolt of electricity at one of the apparently dubbed Mokoi while Janna came out swinging her axe at the other Matsuo, who blocked with their arm, although it still sunk in and spilled some black ink. Pwyll rushed out of the bushes and made lightning fast slashes, striking each shadow with at least one slash, sometimes two, and moved to be between Haru on a Mokoi. Keiji himself came out of the bush and made a vertical slash at the Mokoi that was attacked by Hoichi and was shocked when it didn’t just cut through, but completely severed an arm. 

 

“Ahhhhh!” it screeched “How dare you! How dare you, how dare you, howdareyou howdareyou” it repeated, faster and faster, eventually turning into an indecipherable mess. It revealed its other arm and showed it was holding a boomerang and it tossed it at Keiji. Keiji tried to block it but the boomerang shattered his katana and struck his shoulder, sending him flying while yelling in pain. Pwyll had moved to attack but vanished. Keiji vanished into the bushes and the Mokoi went to follow but Hoichi intercepted it and smacked it into the other Mokoi with its biwa. “You wanna get through him, ya gotta get through my Hoichi!” Janna yelled, poising to attack the Matsuo again. Haru kept stabbing the downed Matsuo, eventually reducing it into a melting pile of black mist and looked at the Mokoi. She had Salamander lob a fireball at the secondary one that was getting ready to toss a boomerang at Janna and was shocked as it burst into flame. It screamed and began to roll around to put the fire out, its friend leaping away in fear. 

 

Janna had Hoichi float between where Keiji vanished into the bushes of the forest and the Mokoi that had begun running towards Keiji. The Mokoi now poised itself to fight. Hoichi began to play a tune, electricity charging at the tip of its biwa. Janna noticed and smiled, turning back to the Matsuo that was fighting her and swung at it, but missed as it leaped backwards… right into a fireball thrown by Haru’s Salamander. It screamed as its robe caught fire and it dropped to the floor and rolled. Janna used the momentum from the horizontal swing to spin in a near complete circle, then changed the angle to turn it into a vertical slash onto the Matsuo, cutting its arm clean off. Hoichi itself played a final note, sending a trio of lightning bolts at the two Mokoi and the Matsuo. The Mokoi weathered the blows, but the Matsuo shouted and burst into black mist. The mokoi now looked hesitant. “Should we…?” one asked. “Yes!” the other shouted, turning and running. A fireball shot out from the bushed, slamming into the head of the fleeing mokoi and caused the whole shadow to burst into black mist. Haru began to approach the other Mokoi, spear at the ready. “Surrender…. You’re outnumbered” Haru said “I’d rather you join us than be destroyed”. The Mokoi looked between them and said “You’ll… spare me… if I… join you…?”. Haru nodded, saying “Yes… become one of my persona and I’ll not just spare you… I’ll show you outside this forest”. The Mokoi stared at her, for several seconds, before saying “That… does sound very nice… we are a very curious species…. You know what species I am, right?”. Haru nodded, saying “Mokoi, right?”. The Mokoi nodded, turning into a ball of light and entering Haru. 

 

Haru had Salamander sit on Keiji’s broken shoulder. It’s fiery aura bathed the shoulder in a healing flame, slowly mending it. “Damn, that rang did a number on your shoulder…. Didn’t think the little things had it in ‘em” Janna stated. “Yeah… thing broke my shoulder” Keiji stated, then looked at Haru “Thanks. I appreciate it”. Haru nodded, saying “Of course.. We’re a team”. After a few minutes, Haru recalled Salamander, sweating a bit. “Is it… healed…?” She asked. Keiji tested his shoulder, wincing slightly but nodded “Yeah. Sore, but healed” and stood fully “Let’s continue… we need to find a good ambush spot with plenty of space and isolated”. Hayato took point as they continued. After thirty minutes of exploring, Hayato started to sprint, saying “I think I found something!”. Haru and the others ran forward, following Hayato into an area that was actually open and empty… but clearly was somewhat regularly used. 

 

It was a circular clearing that had tall trees lined one next to the other to form walls to the clearing with a massive tree opposite of them with a door carved into it with glass put in. On the glass, clearly written, were the words ‘Bean Nighe’. Lining the walls are washtubs filled with clothes and hanging high above were clothes drying off, creating a sort of ‘Rain’ effect for the clearing. “Would this work?” Hayato asked. Haru and Keiji looked around, Janna saying “I’d like it to be… love the rain aesthetic from the dry’in clothes up there”. Keiji commented “I’d like to look in the office first… make sure it's not better. This is probably used often”. Haru walked towards it, saying “Likewise… but even beyond that, it should be. We could in theory find a way to clear this out the day before our ambush”. Hayato stated “Agreed… there are plenty of ways honestly… but we can explore that later. For now, let’s determine if this is viable and leave. It’s late”. Haru and Keiji walked into the office. Immediately, two things were determined. First, that it was not better than the clearing outside… two, that they had found something useful. Hanging on the wall was a map of Bean Nighe’s den and even the surrounding forest, including the entryway. Keiji took it, saying “This… is extremely useful. It’s totally mapped out”. Haru stared at it, saying “Yeah… and it even labels certain areas”. “Hmmmm… seems like the clearing out there… is a ‘Shadow Purifying Room’? But why is it that?” Keiji mused, looking outside. Haru stared herself, then walked outside and looked up. Keiji rolled up the map and followed. Hayato commented this time, saying “Likely because this is where Bean extracts shadows from humans… remember how Pied had Janna play on a stage?”. Janna got apprehensive, looking away and saying “How… could I forget…? All those blank faces…. Staring as I played….”. “That’s because that’s how they get shadows and persona. They have the person perform some task repetitively until that part is drawn out….” Hayato explained “Pied was gonna have you play until your shadow came out, then capture and eat it. Bean likely plans to have Eiko clean until her Persona and shadow come out, devour them, and then return her to her life…. And completely changed”. “It’s evil… but how does that work?” Keiji asked. “I dunno. It’s just how they do it… they do it to the kids too… though in those cases, it takes far shorter… usually only an hour or two” Hayato answered “Now, is this spot viable?”. Keiji nodded, saying “Yeah… I’ll study the map to see if there’s another but for now it works”. With that, Hayato and the group left. 

 

Meanwhile, a 13 year old child sat in a room. He was fairly thin and wore a white beanie and a blue jacket with grey pants. He had brown hair and eyes and sat in front of a desk. On the desk were a trio of monitors, each displaying a desktop. Above those monitors were wall-mounted monitors, displaying similar desktops. Also on the desk was a very high-tech keyboard and mouse. The child sat in a chair that had to have cost at least $400. On the ground next to the desk was a massive tower that contained the motherboard of the computer he was using. If one looked inside, they would see it contained 2 high-end solid state drives and 2 terabyte physical drives, along with expensive components, like a thread ripper processor. The inside glowed due to the various elements in the dark, which the room was. That and the monitors illuminated the boy. The rest of the room was a mess but also amazingly featureless. Posters were long worn, barely resembling what they once were and figurines collected dust. The boy looked to the upper left monitor and brought the window on it to the bottom central monitor. It was of the chatroom that Haru and her friends used. “The forest again…” the boy muttered, minimizing the chat window and pulling another window onto the desktop. It was a google search for the Sairento Forest. He sat up fully and began to work. He was far too curious… curious about what this group of strangers were doing in Hanayosei and why they were so interested in the Sairento Forest. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end of chapter 9. The training chapter as its called. Next chapter will focus more on planning for the ambush, laying it out, and haru and keiji bonding with their social links and maybe developing new ones. I also including that last paragraph to tease the next party member the group is getting. 
> 
> Until next time!


	11. Chapter 10: Relax

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Haru and her friends return from the forest successful in finding Bean Nighe's den, complete with a map of the entire thing. Haru and Keiji work on their bonds for a day while forces conspire against them.

**_Chapter 10_ **

_ Relax _

  
  
  


As Haru, Janna, Keiji, and Hayato left the clearing Hayato suddenly stopped, its fur sticking straight out. “Hide!” Hayato yelled, jumping into the bushes. Haru, Janna, and Keiji hid in the bushes as well, not sure what got Hayato’s hackles up. It became clear soon as voices were heard, and by the time they were decipherable, their sources were seen. A pair of bat-wing females of alluring figures and scanty clothing clearly meant to sexually entice men flanked a tall woman who was 10 feet tall. She wore a black cloak and walked with a silent stride. Over the front was a black veil that covered her face. However, the apron over the front of the cloak was unmistakably in the fashion of a maid. The woman’s hands were thin and long, but not outrageously so. “So? Can we join already?” one of the bat-winged females asked. The woman sighed and continued into the clearing, looking around and saying “I’m not certain… certainly you’d be a boon, but based on my knowledge, Maeve would be a better fit”. “We considered that but you know what happens if one of her minions tries what we wanna….” the other bat-winged female stated. “Yeah. We don’t just want a harem of men, we want all the men” the first one stated “We can’t though unless we have a patron”. The tall woman turned, looking down at them and said “You think I can stand up to Maeve…? You’re more naive than I thought…. Leave. I won’t discuss this anymore… go with either Gan or Maeve, I don’t care which”. The woman gave a huff and flew deeper into the forest, back past them. The tall woman walked towards her office and said to herself “Clueless shadows…. You can’t just do as you please here unless you align yourself correctly. No matter. As long as he is in charge-” and her voice was cut off by the door to her office closing behind her as she stepped inside. Hayato whispered “Let’s get out of here!” and took off. Haru, Keiji, and Janna followed. 

 

Once outside of the forest, they all were going to agree to meet on top of the roof to begin discussing plans when Haru thought of something else and said “Let’s talk in the chatroom tonight. We can compile everything and make plans for tomorrow while we’re relaxing”. Janna and Keiji looked at each other, then her, and nodded. “Sure” Janna said “I’ll be on at 9”. Keiji commented “Probably 10. Got something to deal with beforehand.. But after that and dinner, I’ll be on”. Haru waved to them and started walking, checking her phone. The map data from today was gone, the third time in a row, confirming what Hayato said. She sighed and put it away, continuing to walk. Once she got home, she took her shoes off and set her bag on top of the shoe closet, saying aloud “I’m home!”. Hana yelled back from the kitchen “Welcome home! I’m making dinner. Would you mind setting the table?”. Haru began to do just that. Based on what she saw in the kitchen, they were having a self-serve sort of dinner. Half an hour later, as predicted, Hana brought out several plates full of food that were each singular. “Wow… that looks delicious” Haru commented. They each had a bowl of noodles in broth with various ingredients laid out on the table, including additional noodles and broth. This included fish and tempura pieces. As they ate they talked about various topics, ranging from how she was adjusting to life and her friends. Hana became silent as the topic went from Keiji to Janna. After a few minutes, he asked “A question about Janna… are you… in trouble with her…?”. She became puzzled, her expression matching it, and replied “Not that I know of… she’s actually been pretty reliable… at least when it comes to the city itself”. Hana raised an eyebrow as Haru elaborated “Janna isn’t very good at school. She skipped a lot in the past… it's only recently she’s taking school seriously at all”. Hana nodded, saying “Alright… I was worried because I’ve heard troubling rumours. Specifically that Janna had begun substance abuse… suspected because of behavioral changes”. Haru nodded, saying “Yeah… I hear about that myself. I can’t say they’re true or untrue but whenever we’re together, even late into the night like tonight she doesn’t take anything… nor does she seem agitated or bothered”. Hana smiled and said “I see… I trust your judgement…. I just find myself growing more worried”. “Why?” Haru asked, curious. “My investigation into your father has hit a dead end…. My contacts have refused to speak to me about it…. One begged me to stop looking into it” Hana said, looking at Haru with a look of regret “If I’m honest… I can’t help but suspect the police are trying to cover up either his escape or death….”. Haru shivered a bit, partially in fear due to remembering the fierce persona of her father and its strength. Hana continued, saying “I’m debating dropping my looking into it. Going further might endanger us and uproot your life again… but… nevermind. I shouldn’t discuss this with a child…”. Haru was silent for a while before saying “You should continue… just be more… subtle. Just asking direct questions might not work anymore”. Hana stared at her before giving a wry smile and asking “When did you become such a smart detective?”. Haru simply stated “I learned from a very skilled man”. Hana’s smile softened into a genuine one as he said “Thank you… truly”. Haru smiled at the warmth she felt from the compliment, and a strengthening bond. 

 

Keiji finished ascending the steps to the shrine and property of his home, noting the drunk individual sitting at the foot of the steps up to the donation box at the front of the shrine. The man smiled and waved, saying “Heeey!” Lee greeted “My favorite kiddo!”. Keiji sighed and asked “Again?”. Lee nodded, saying “Yeeep. This time, it was a spooky ghooooost!” and pantomimed that he was a ghost as he drolled out the word ghost. Keiji sighed, asking “Really…? What did this ghost look like?”. “A maid” the man stated “An elven maid wit lih blue shkin floashin’ thru the shky like gravshity didn’t exshist”. Keiji stared for a moment, thinking and saying “Hmmm… can’t say I’ve seen that one before… but I’ve seen shadows move in the forest so I suppose a creature like that could exist…. Anything else?”. Lee nodded in affirmation, continuing “She wash soooo beautiful… made me wish she would be my maid… oh if only…” and sighed in desire. “I… don’t think that’s a good idea… what if it eats your soul?” Keiji countered. Lee nodded, saying “Makesh shense… everythin’ comesh at a cosht… my wife comesh with low cosht… rather her than shome soul-sucking demon…”. Lee was silent for several minutes before looking at Keiji and saying “Thanksh for lishening… feel a lot better…. Gonna go home”. Keiji nodded, saying “Want me to call a cab?”. Lee shook his head, saying “Already called one… shee you another day” and stood, heading for the stairs. Keiji helped him down anyway, ignoring the man's protest… and was glad as the man nearly tripped on the first step. He felt the warmth of a growing bond inside his chest and smiled. 

 

Haru was on 9 as she said she would be and Janna joined her shortly after. They talked for a bit before Keiji came on, typing ‘Sorry for being a bit late’ into the chat, followed by an explanation ‘I had to help a man home’. ‘It’s fine’ Haru replied ‘We can start now anyway… where do we start’. Janna answered with ‘It was your idea and you dunno? Lol. Fine. I’ll start… We know exactly where her den is. We may not know her route but we know one place she always goes… and it's her office’. Keiji noted ‘We don’t know she goes there… but based on Hayato’s information, we can guess with certainty that the clearing we saw will undoubtedly be where they wring out Eiko’s persona and shadow’. Haru herself entered ‘Agreed…. But the office will shield our presence. Good idea Janna’. ‘No problem’ Janna said ‘That said, what about bean herself? We know anything?’. ‘Ask Hayato to investigate bean for information on her abilities…’ Haru commented ‘I can do some extracurricular study on bean’. ‘I’ll help’ Keiji stated ‘I’ve got some old tales in the family archive to dig through’. Haru smiled as Janna said ‘As for the map… let's pour over that at school. Roof?’. Both her and Keiji responded with ‘Roof’. After that, they talked some more about unimportant things before wishing each other goodnight and heading to bed. Haru herself went into the velvet room before bed. They wanted to try their hand at some fusions. 

 

The next day, Haru went through it as though it were a normal school day. At lunch she met up with Keiji and Janna to take a look at the map they got. To make heads or tails and see if they could use Bean Nighe’s den against her in some manner. The layout of the den was interesting. The clearing and thus Bean’s office was near the entrance they went to. Further, there were paths deeper into the forest from Bean’s den. There were barracks deeper in as well as various places of interest. An area that controlled the flow of water, a storage area, and most notably there was an area where Bean stashed persona she collected and was granted for distribution. Everything was labeled in japanese and it made deciphering it easy. Keiji noted something, saying “You know…. It's like this is just one of many maps”. Janna stared and said “Yeah… Why would a creature make notes like this? I mean sure it's just being tidy but…” and was silent for a bit. Haru thought about it and said “That means…. My father wasn’t their only agent… there are others” in a low tone. Keiji and Janna were silent for several minutes, none of them dared to speak. The prospect was dangerous but very real. Haru spoke up, saying “It’s lucky though… Yoshinori wasn’t working with anyone… that means he was disconnected. If we’re lucky, each member's agents are disconnected from one another… or at the very least Yoshinori was disconnected from the larger network and the one responsible for his involvement is working solo against us”. Keiji sighed in relief, saying “That’s good news… it’d be terrible to draw the ire of a massive network of supernatural agents”. Janna laughed, saying “Yeah… we’re still weak and it’d be a hard fight… but we don’t have to worry about that. For now, we just need to be worried about being strong enough to fight Bean Nighe”. All of them nodded and continued to examine the map until their lunch period ended and they had to return to class. 

 

After school, Haru was going to hang out with Janna when she noticed a girl with a vacant expression. “Who’s that?” she asked Janna. “Her…? Oh! That’s Hei Arima… She's in the same class as me and Keiji…. Why?”. “Have you… noticed how she looks?” Haru asked “She… looks like you did when pied kidnapped you…”. Janna stared and said “Yeah… you’re right… that’s weird”. Haru stared for a few moments, saying “I’m going to try to help her. Maybe with my persona I can help” and began to walk towards Hei. Janna tried to stop Haru, whispering “Hey! Wait!” but was unable to. Haru summoned a persona she purchased from Helena and one she was the most familiar with and had it go forward…. Deidre. It was the woman of sorrows. Maybe it had some power to help. She was able to make some memory surface. Deidre placed its hand on either side of Hei’s head, acting purely on Haru’s instinct, emotion, and intuition. “Hei Arima?” Haru asked “I’m Haru Matsuhada… are you okay?”. Hei looked at her, tilted her head a bit in confusion, and said “I’m fine… why do you ask? Do I look not okay?”. Haru nodded, saying “Your expression… it’s like you’re empty… had me sort of worried”. Hei shrugged, saying “Doesn’t matter. I feel fine. Just doing my day-to-day”. A pair of girls passed, glancing at them, and Haru heard one whisper “Why is Matsuhada-chan talking to Arima?”. The other replied “Prolly feels sorry for the lost cause…. Heard she was fun and then suddenly became boring as hell”. Hei barely reacted… until a few seconds later when Deidre’s hands glowed and applied patra. Then, Hei’s eyebrow twitched. “Are… are you sure you’re fine?” Haru asked. Hei hesitated and finally said “I’m sure I’m fine… but it is nice that someone showed concern…. Can we talk again sometime?”. Haru nodded, saying “Of course Arima”. Hei gave Haru a small smile and said “Thank you” before leaving. Haru could feel a bond forming. 

 

Keiji himself dealt with a student. He was staring at the most popular student in school, Haru Kosiki. She was staring back. “Keiji” she spat “I need to speak to you”. Keiji sighed, asking “What?”. “I… heard your family… helps with supernatural troubles” Kosiki said. “We do… Do you have a…?” and was interrupted as she responded with “I… think it’s something perfectly reasonable but… My little sister swears that her room is haunted…. Could you… swing by sometime and….?”. Keiji nodded, saying “Sure. Of course… does today work?”. Kosiki seemed shocked but nodded, saying “O-of course… let’s go” and began walking. Keiji followed, sighing internally. He knew Kosiki well. The most popular female student and conversely the most toxic. Not a bully exactly, but Kosiki was well known for doing what she needed to get what she wanted, even resorting to dirty tactics. She never bullied for pleasure because she always rode cloud nine. However, for some reason, his altruism bothered Kosiki, to the point of being an actual bully to him… to all the non-effect it had. Anything she tried slid off his back like a duck in water. His popularity provided a buffer that forced her to put in effort in order to overcome, something that would harm her own popularity. As such, her attempts amounted to subtle things, jabs at his family and insults to his hygiene here and there. He agreed to help partially out of his altruistic nature, but also partially because he was curious what was so bad that she’d stoop to asking him for help… or what trap she concocted. It took an hour or so but they approached the property and she guided him inside. He removed his shoes at the entrance and followed her to the room. He raised an eyebrow, noticing how mature her little sister apparently was. He stepped in, and immediately felt it. The presence of a shadow. He looked around, saying “Yeah… something is here for sure…”. He heard a gulp as someone asked “Can… can anything… be done?”. Keiji looked around, summoning Pwyll. It was still in its Chariot Arcana form and so was a striking figure. He sensed something move in his vision and had Pwyll rush forward, slashing it. He heard a scream and saw it appear. Before him sat a long-armed, pointy eared, red-skinned creature with azure eyes. It wore a green tunic and said “Cease! This is my place!”. He silently had Pwyll dispatch it with a series of quick, lightning fast slashes and said “I’ll need to get my exorcism equipment but yes I can bless this place, exercise whatever has taken residence, and free it of evil”. Kosiki sighed in relief, saying “Good, means I-... my little sister can rest in peace. Can it be done by tomorrow?”. He nodded, saying “Absolutely. I’ll do it first thing in after school… unless you want it done sooner?”. Kosiki shook her head, saying “No, no, that’s fine… thank you”. He simply smiled at the warmth of a growing bond and said “Of course Kosiki… I am just an altruist”. Kosiki’s smile dropped as she said “Great, now get out”. Keiji simply chuckled and left. 

 

Haru herself headed for the city park. Janna was with her and asked her to come. Janna had her trademark guitar on her and once they were at the park center set her bag down and got her guitar ready. “What are we doing?” Haru asked. “Well… our… jobs cost money right? So I’m gonna play for some cash” Janna replied. “Will that… really work?” Haru asked. “Sure” Janna stated “Just need ta play right… any suggestions for specific songs?”. Haru thought about it and suggested “How about… that one micheal jackson song?”. Janna gave her a big grin and said “Great idea!” and began to play it. Haru took a seat nearby and watched the people as Janna played. People looked interested but none payed her much mind. Janna kept trying for the entire song three times over before stopping, frowning deeply. Haru suggested “How about… that one you played for me?”. Janna looked at her, surprised for a moment then afraid, saying “I-I dunno… It’s… I… people might not like it….”. Haru gave her a gentle smile and said “Well… just play what feels right then… sooner or later someone will like it, no?”. Janna stared at her, then smiled and nodded. Janna set up again, but stopped and set her guitar aside for a second. Haru stared and wondered what Janna was doing, but gasped as Janna removed her beanie. There was a bit of hair that came down the back but the main feature were the two long bangs that fell down and flanked either side of her face, almost framing it. Further, Janna’s hair was a deep purple color but not so much so that it was indiscernible from black. The two bangs went down a full 2 inches past her chin. Janna picked up her guitar and started to play, seemingly coming up with notes on the fly. She’d stop when she messed up and begin again. She set the beanie out in front of her. The spectacle attracted enough attention that people walked over, interested, and actually put some small change into the beanie. A few hours passed as Janna played before she finally stopped, saying to the last few people there “Thanks for com’in! I appreciate it!” and picked her beanie up like it was a bag and walking to Haru. “That was so great! I loved it so much!” said to Janna, excited like one might be to see their favorite singer sing at a concert. Janna’s face reddened a bit and she replied “I did have fun… thanks. It was…. Great to play how I wanted…”. Janna hesitated but finally sat down next to Haru and said “Anyway! Let’s count the money we got”. Haru nodded and counted with Janna. After ten minutes, they totaled it. 2500 yen. Janna smiled and said “Not bad, not bad…. This can get us something”. Haru nodded, saying “Yeah!”. Janna was quiet for several moments before asking “Hey Haru… before. When you helped Hei… I thought I saw Deidre… was it her? Why’s she back?”. Haru looked at Janna, saying “Well… she was my first persona… and she did help me when I felt overwhelmed…. I thought maybe it could help Hei… and also I did feel a bit… off without her”. Janna looked back at Haru, silent for a while, finally saying “You are her and she is you huh…?” and smiled “Still feel like a mouse huh?”. Haru looked away, feeling a bit embarrassed. “A… a bit” Haru admitted “I’m not that different than when we first met”. Janna chuckled, leaning back and saying “Well… take as long as you need to grow mouse… I’m here to protect you” and put her beanie back on, depositing the yen they made into her wallet. . Haru looked at Janna, smiling a bit as she joked “As your groupie?”. Janna laughed and stated “Bit far in the relationship to call you that… friend sounds more appropriate… and on that note, let’s go get something to eat… we’ll use this money. We know we can make money this way so treating ourselves this one time isn’t bad”. Haru nodded and followed Janna as they headed to Mickeys. 

 

After leaving Kosiki’s house, Keiji decided to take a lesson from Abar. He dialed his number on his cell and Abar answered immediately, saying “Abar Kami here. How are you Keiji?”. “Good… could I get another lesson this evening?” he asked. Abar laughed and replied “Yes, yes! You have 15 minutes… do that and I’ll have a treat waiting” before hanging up. Keiji took a deep breath before taking off. He didn’t make it in 15 minutes, but he did make it in 25 minutes, albeit tired. Abar was standing at his front door and watched Keiji approach. He asked  Keiji as he arrived at his front door “Almost thirty minutes… where did you come from?”. Keiji panted, and told him it was from a classmate's house and gave the address. Abar chuckled and said “Impressive… come inside. You can rest… I’ll give you the treat too” and opened his door. Keiji went inside and sat on a bench as Abar grabbed a mineral water and protein snack bar from the mini fridge in the dojo. Keiji ate the snack first and then slowly drank through the mineral water over the course of half an hour. Afterwards, Abar walked inside, holding some clothing. “I got something made for you… technically my other students have one but yours has something a bit special” Abar stated, offering Keiji the clothing. Keiji blinked, asking “What…?” and Abar spoke, saying “Your gi and hakama. Can’t be a proper pupil without them. It isn’t premium, you have to earn that… but it’s functional. And rightfully yours” with a tone of pride. Keiji stared for a moment before slowly accepting it, saying “I… can’t possibly…”, but Abar interjected, saying “You can, and will… with pride. As my pupil”. Keiji looked at the clothing for a few moments before nodding, saying “Thank you… master”. Abar smiled wide and said “Now… go to the changing room and change, then be out here… and I ain’t doing your laundry, you’re responsible for it!”. 

 

Haru headed home after dinner with Janna. Hana wasn’t home, but left dinner in the fridge for her. She heated it up and served herself. It was nice, like expected, and cleaning the dishes she went to her room. Rather than get on to chat she decided to visit the velvet room. As she walked through she felt her mind slip for a few moments before collecting itself and making sense of her surroundings. The camp… the same bushes, but this time she saw clothes hanging just out of reach of the light. Igor stared at her with his long, large nose and wide grin. She bowed and said “Hello Igor-sama. Helena-sama”. “Good evening, miss Haru. Welcome back. Might I inquire how we may be of service?” Igor asked. “Perhaps… I have questions about the court. I thought to ask you” Haru stated, watching them. Igor replied, not flinching or giving anything away “I do have knowledge and information… but not all of it I can tell. Your journey is important and some information will interfere”. Haru nodded, saying “I understand… then I’ll just ask two… three questions. I think you can answer them but… well… we’ll see. First, did the court take the persona of Hei Arima”. Igor was silent for a few moments, as if deliberating if he could disclose that information, when Helena answered “Yes. Though you deduced such yourself and merely came for confirmation, no?”. Haru nodded and continued asking “Yes… same for the next one. The nameless man….”. Helena nodded, but stated “His case is far, far worse…. They took not just his Persona and Shadow… but also his very soul, leaving only a fragment behind”. Igor let this happen but Haru knew he was not happy due to the fact Igor’s attention was on Helena. “Then… am I correct in assuming that I can heal them with Deidre and the power of social links?” Haru asked. This time, Igor’s eyes locked with hers as did Helena’s. Helena gave a mirthful smile and chuckled, saying “My, my… master, didn’t you guess it’d take her a few months to discover this? It seems your power is waning…”. Igor shook his head, saying “I would suspect such normally… but her journey is conjoined with the Ace… as such, fate is not as it normally would. Even my master would have some difficulty navigating the paths of divination through their fate”. Helena laughed, saying “Well then…. Guest. Haru was it? I will answer. Yes. You can…. If you have the strength to”. Haru frowned a bit, saying ponderingly“The strength huh…? Am I… strong enough to really get them back…?”.  Helena shook her head, saying “No, no Haru dear… their Persona? Their shadows? Long gone… devoured by the court. You must use your power to stimulate their own power”. Haru’s eyes widened and was about to protest as Helena pointed, saying “You’ve already done this… that use of Patra through Deidre was ingenious. It didn’t completely help, but it started the process. Continue, and you will eventually succeed… The question is, do you have the strength of heart to do it? The closer they get to Awakening, the harder on your heart it will be”. Haru stalled in answering, unsure how to respond. Helena’s confident gaze softened as she said “I will train your heart… I will help you with tests…. I will challenge you and reward you for overcoming, Haru. If you’re willing”. Haru stared at Helena before smiling and nodding “Yes.. I… I want to help people”. With that, a warmth flowing into her and filled her. “My, my… forming a bond with my assistant… and your ruler of power. Fascinating. The wonders never end” Igor commented. Haru looked at Igor, saying “Thank you… truly… with this… I feel like I can make a difference, Igor-sama”. “I am happy to help my guest, Miss Haru. I am delighted to, even” Igor responded, his grin widening. 

 

Keiji finished ascending the stairs to his home, carrying his new gi and hakama over one arm and his schoolbag in his free arms hand. As he finished he saw a figure wearing a well-tailored button-up jacket and black jeans with black leather shoes. He wore a golden wristwatch and a fedora. The man turned, looking at him. The man underneath the button up jacket wore a plaid shirt. He stood up straight and walked over, saying “Excuse me, young man. Might I ask you a few questions?”. Keiji stopped, nodding and saying “Sure… how can I help?”. “My name is Ganjo Kazakori. I’m working the missing kids case with the police” the man stated, showing his badge “Are you Keiji Noori?”. Keiji looked at the badge, nodding since it was at least authentic at first glance and said “I am… how can I help you?”. “I heard the Noori family deals in supernatural stuff… that true?” Ganjo asked “If so… did you investigate that? And if so again, what’d you find?”. Keiji considered the questions for a few seconds before asking “Are you new…? If so, that explains why you’re uncertain… but let me fix that. The Noori family does, usually it’s youngest or the to-be-heir. I haven’t however”. Ganjo nodded, looking to the forest, saying “Well… that night. You see anything? The stairs go down to the road and you get a nice view from here…. Not so much your yard but still”. Keiji shook his head, saying “No. Nothing. Sorry… although a few nights ago I did hear some music. Sounded old-fashioned and western but that’s all I could discern. I still can’t find the spirit responsible”. He had lied a bit to obfuscate the truth. Ganjo stared at him, sighing and saying “Darn… that’s a dead end… thanks kid” and began to walk away. After 10 or so steps however and as Keiji turned away, Ganjo stopped and turned, asking “Oh… before I forget. Do you know Haru Matsuhada and Hatsume Kintori”. Keiji stopped, hesitated for only a moment before answering “Yes. We’re friends… why?”. Ganjo’s expression changed. He seemed interested now and said “Cause… rumor has it, Kintori and Matsuhada did it… for what reason we dunno. We suspect they used hypno-” but Keiji cut him off, saying “Impossible… Haru was home that night and Janna was with her. Haru’s guardian can attest to that”. Ganjo smiled a bit, saying “Perhaps… except he was asleep between nine and two. Four hours… conveniently just long enough to slip from her place to the forest, do something, and return… I’ll grant I can’t finger how they’d get that many kids and then into the forest without something unlikely and elaborate…. But I think this is something worth pursuing”. Keiji scoffed, asking “Why is that, officer?”. “Simple” Ganjo replied “You lied to me”. Keiji stopped moving and tried to freeze his expression, though he flinched before he could. “See, interestingly I did get a witness report down the way about loud music but no source… around the time the kids had to have been kidnapped but no other reports except on that night… western, old-fashioned, from a flute most likely, and going to the forest… and then here you are reporting the same thing but a different night. Can’t help but wonder what you’re hiding”. Keiji stated “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m just reporting what I heard. Sorry I can’t give anymore helpful information”. Ganjo smiled and said “Fine. I’m gonna find out however. Best you come clean while I’m be’in friendly… after all. Could be as simple as you saw somethin’ weird and got spooked. Best that come out now… when you feel like talking, come talk to me at the station. Bye” and walked away. Keiji felt a small bond form from it, but was unsure how to feel… he didn’t feel like friends with Ganjo. He felt a threat… or was it more a sense of being challenged? He was confused… he had to talk to Igor about this. 

 

Keiji opened his eyes and spoke immediately, asking “Igor-sama… I thought social links could only form through genuine bonds”. Igor’s expression changed from delighted to confused. “That is true Keiji… is something the matter?” Igor asked. “I just made a bond with a detective” Keiji stated “That caught me in a lie and is now a danger to the efforts me and my friends… and I don’t feel friendship or kinship with him. What is going on?”. Igor stared for a few moments, before grinning and saying “My boy, I never said bonds were just ones of friendship. Sometimes, things like lust, animosity, even hatred can form them… but they always form into genuine bonds. If that answer doesn’t satisfy you, dear guest, how about we peruse the bond itself?”. Keiji nodded, saying “I’d like that”. Igor clapped his hands and Helena opened the book. Instantly, something akin to a data screen for a character appeared and it showed information on his new bond. Ganjo Kazakiri, Justice Arcana, Rank 1. Grants Keiji the gift of Recompense, which grants Pwyll the skill Kouha. Then the part that interested him, the bond status. Rivalry was stated as the reason. “Interesting” Igor stated “It seems your bond is to be one of rivalry… at least for the time being. It may change in the future”. Keiji sighed and said “Alright… thank you”. “Of course, Keiji. I am here to help all my guests and you are a guest. I apologize for the confusion” Igor said, apologizing. “I apologize for overreacting… I was-... nevermind. Thank you, Igor-sama” Keiji stated. He went back to a sitting position and let his mind slip, leaving the velvet room. 

 

Bean Nighe sat in her office, veil up to reveal a beautiful, feminine, elven face. Her ears weren’t nearly as long as Morgan’s and a bit less elegant, but they were still a foot long and pointed. She wore wooden-framed glasses and was currently going over paperwork. She had bright ruby eyes and purple lipstick. Her skin was as white as snow. She looked up as the sound of rushing wind filled the room and then rushing wind did fill the room. She sighed, asking her sudden intruder “Morgan…. Can’t you knock on the door first at least and have some decency?”. “I cannot. I need a favor. I must borrow some persona. I’ve been cut off” Morgan stated demandingly. Bean stopped, staring at Morgan for several moments. “Well? Aren’t you going to??” Morgan asked impatiently. “Morgan” Bean stated “If you’ve been cut off, his majesty has effectively placed a persona embargo on you. I will not defy his will… now leave”. “Who cares, just give me them. I need them” Morgan demanded this time, stepping forward. “No. I will not tolerate this either. I am the logistics officer and I will not defy his majesty” Bean stated. “Give me those persona now. I outrank you and I am giving you a direct order” Morgan snarled, letting her power leak out. “No. That is final… if you’re so dissatisfied? File a complaint. I’ll send it directly to Erlkonig himself” Bean threatened, glaring right into Morgan's eyes. Morgan flinched away. Morgan then yelled out in anger, sending a bolt of power into a nearby wall in an attempt to intimidate. It left a gaping hole. Bean sat unflinching. “Tsk” Morgan growled “Fine…. Whatever. This is why you’re the lowest rank, Bean…” before turning away. “Then why are you the highest? Trickery, deception, and in general tactics befitting a coward?” Bean countered. “No!” Morgan yelled “I got here because I was smarter, I was more efficient, and I was stronger…. I was more powerful. I’m the most powerful of the lower court” before turning into her bird form and flying away. Bean sneered as Morgan left, saying “You’re only there so his majesty can watch you immolate yourself as you are doing…. And I’m here to replace you when it happens. Idiot”. Bean returned to her paperwork, muttering “Going to have to get a demeter here to regrow that wall…”.


End file.
